So, what do you do when Mother Nature drops 18 inches of snow on you? Go snowshoeing! Madison, and the entire state of Wisconsin, was pretty much shut down Wednesday. After doing a few chores around my apartment, I began to get restless. I needed to get out and do some exploring and photography.
I managed muster up enough courage and energy to go for a 3 mile snow hike before the winds picked up and temperature dropped. It's Thursday morning as I write, and the wind chill is a bitter -16 degrees Fahrenheit. Now the temperature matches the forlornness of woods under a fresh blanket of snow with a grey canopy. Snow is pretty for a little while, but by early January I'm ready for spring.
Birds were fairly scarce, but I managed to find a Red-tailed Hawk, American Crow, Brown Creeper, White-breasted Nuthatch, Black-capped Chickadee, Northern Cardinal, and a few Dark-eyed Juncos. Scanning carefully through the few conifers dotted along the creek corridor, I found a roosting Great Horned Owl.
All images © 2009 Mike McDowell