Simple Beauty

No paints a picture as gorgeous as God does. With the ice sparkling on the trees in the sun, and the beauty of the birch tree, we could not resist bringing home some desktop pics for our computers since we have to look at them all day. There is just something relaxing and wonderful about being out in God's creation.

Dangerous Snacks

If you are ever snowshoeing and you stop for a snack when it is zero degrees, then you should listen to that still small voice just outside your head, which might happen to be your wife. The voice will say, "Don't try to cut that frozen power bar with your extremely sharp knife, you might cut yourself." But if you chose to ignore "the voice", your friends will be there to take bloody pictures, and practice their rusty first aide skills on your limbs. And next time, maybe make sure you rent adult snowshoes instead of kids.......Do you think he sunk in the snow in those kiddy snowshoes???

Snowshoeing in the Ice

Here is what snowshoeing in the ice is like:

1. Step, drop through the crusted snow with cheap rented snowshoes, unless you are Bob and have Dad's good ones.
2. Step again, drop through crusted snow, foot catches.
3. Begin the fall downward.
4. Land on hard crusted ice pack with a thud.
5. Hear someone yell, "Man Down"
6. Play like a bowl of spaghetti until you get your footing and then get up.
Repeat.

A Bit of Snow

This is up by the bridge near Wilderness State Park. There was even more snow before the ice storm. It was impressive and beautiful in the sunshine.

X-Country Ice

When you x-country ski after an ice storm the process goes like this: Glide forward, slide back; glide forward, slide left; glide forward, slide right; glide forward, catch, fall, get up. Pick up your water bottle. Repeat.
We have a new expression: "Get your Glide on"

Lunch and a Kiss

We literally ate our lunch on Lake Michigan, standing on the lake. It was so pretty. Of course, we had to take our traditional kissing picture on the trail. Our lips froze together......not really!
The blue ice was out too far to get a good picture of it. Yes, I refrained from walking out there to take a picture. I have learned something from several near drownings.

Chilcoot Pass

Who knew that the Chilkoot Pass was in Michigan. We had to haul all our gear in to the camp area in the pouring, freezing rain. It rained for 30 straight hours and every drop froze on the roads, making them an ice rink.

Ice Cross Country Skiing

It was zero degrees and we cross country skied for several miles. It took about 1 mile or so just to get blood circulating to our fingers and toes.