Snow!

Sunday it seemed as though everyone except us was getting snow. We could see it in the hills above us, but all we had was cold rain and wind. Ugh. So we drove up into the hills to enjoy the first snowfall of the season. We didn't have to go far.... but we went a little too far for our truck with no traction devices and had to back down the slippery mountain road.

Back a bit lower in the no-snow zone, we found that the trail to Yoncalla Falls was open again after having been thoroughly blocked by downed trees for the last two years. Hooray for the hardy souls who cleared it.. no doubt a work crew from the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde, who are gradually making a trail all the way from Grand Ronde to the coast. We did not hike across Yoncalla Creek to the upper falls on Boulder Creek, but we could see it from the road now that the leaves are gone.






On Monday the higher elevations and higher latitudes (like Seattle) were having blizzard conditions. We were having cold rain and wind. But before I went out to do evening chores, the rain had turned to snow. Hooray!

I was not so thrilled when I went outside. It was snowing horizontally... very wet and very cold. Soon the snow turned to snow pellets travelling sideways about 40 mph... painful as they peppered my face. This was not what I had in mind when I was wishing for snow.

By Tuesday morning (today) the brutal snow pellets had changed to lovely snowflakes drifting slowly down as snowflakes should. Only about an inch of snow was on the ground but that was enough to make things pretty. Much of the snow melted today in the areas not shaded, although light snow showers continued off and on. The shady woods were still lovely this afternoon, though, with nature's artworks everywhere.




Agency Creek was a deep chilly blue and running full. But not as full as it will be in the spring, after the snow above us melts.

The dogs accompanied me on my woodland walk of course. This moss and fern covered stump looked like a howling dog to me, but Shirley and McCoy didn't think so.














We usually wonder if we'll have a white Christmas. This year I wonder if we'll have a white Thanksgiving.