Sunday, February 3, 2019

Yeah, that whole Polar Vortex thing...

But this is the South. So what it meant for us was a few days of very chilly weather and even snow flurries one day. Naturally, the schools closed for two days because of it.
After some freezing days, however, the warmth returned and on Friday we drove up to a wildlife management area, on my younger son's recommendation, to see the re-introduced elk herd. The hike was up a partially-graveled road. We missed the shortcut, because the sign was a little less than helpful.
Fortunately, the herd was grazing close to the observation area, so no problem finding them. I tried to count - I think there were about 70 elk.
The landscape is a little barren this time of year, but they did have a watering hole.
There were a few bulls in the herd. Seems like it would be awkward to have heavy antlers on your head.
We stayed for a while, just watching them graze, then hiked back to our car.
Yesterday we drove to a bird sanctuary for another hike. This one wound down by the river. I didn't get a photo of it, but we did see a beaver swimming by.
The sanctuary used to be a farm. We stopped to look through the old farm house and take a breather on the porch. Incidentally, I'm not covering my head even at work any more. Just doesn't seem necessary.
Today was warmer still and we headed over to a nearby park for another long walk. By the end it was so warm, in fact, that I was down to a t-shirt. And then I came home and did some yard work! I know we've got lots of winter ahead, but I am enjoying the little warm spell while it's here.

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