The Meaning of Cold

(January 1st) Everyone else in the hotel was out late partying, but I was able to get to sleep early and wake up well before sunrise. I was expecting the Upper Peninsula to be cold and had brought loads of clothing for the occasion. I was wearing two layers of gloves, six layers of clothes including a thick down jacket. Yesterday I actually felt toasty in the temperatures around 0F. Today was a different story altogether. There is a big difference between 0 or -5 and the -20 it was today. Today was just downright cold and I spent most of it standing still in the full wind. It was great though! For the morning I headed out to check out a place called Hulbert Bog. On the road out there I saw a Grey Wolf - a complete surprise. Of course no pictures came from it, and I didn't see any other wildlife all morning, but I was glad to know that there is now a small population of wolves once again in Michigan (outside of Isle Royale). This shot will show you a little of the wintery conditions of the morning.

Next I headed to the spot where Snowy Owls were supposed to frequent. On the way I ran into a large group of ravens with three Bald Eagles mixed in, all feeding off a deer carcass some hunters had left on the roadside. They flew when my car approached, but I continued on and returned on foot, trying to wait in the snow for the birds to return. It seems the carcass was pretty much picked clean and only a single raven came back in an hours worth of waiting. But I was successful in finding a Snowy Owl when I continued on. A gorgeous and large bird. Next time I just have to convince him to find a better perch than the utility lines!

The rest of the cold day I didn't have much wildlife luck, but I took advantage of the scenery when the skies cleared late in the afternoon. I passed by this frozen river that I liked the look of.

In a few places some of last year's dead vegetation popped up through the snow-covered landscape. I worked some with depth of field to create a little bit of a less traditional landscape shot.

As the light just kept getting better, it brought out more and more texture in the snow. Shadows started to creep out here and there, giving the contours folds and curves. It was those little details that drew me to a photo like this.

The cold day ended in a sunset in new clouds. I had great fun today, especially when I was able to ignore the cold in my hands and feet. I also had a good feel for all the locations in around a 60 mile radius, so I had a good game plan for tomorrow if luck was with me.