Pretty winter day

The weather was lovely this past weekend—cold, but sunny. Best of all, the wind didn’t come out to wreak havoc play, so I am happy with winter again. This was the kind of winter weather that’s fun to play in and be out in. I took advantage of it to wander around in the woods, visiting the gamelands that border Roundtop Mtn.

To most people, perhaps especially in a snow-covered winter, the gameland forests probably don’t look much different than the woods around Roundtop. But to me, who knows Roundtop so well, these woods are different enough to be interesting.

Most basic, at Roundtop I am usually on a hill or in a deep, dark and narrow valley between hills. Down in the gamelands, I have wide open vistas to enjoy. On a bright winter afternoon with a sapphire sky overhead, that’s a nice difference.

The gamelands have more “edge” habitat than Roundtop, so I get to see more sparrows—something usually in short supply up on Roundtop. Occasionally, the woods open up and give way to old fields where I can see bluebirds and a few robins flocking together, the odd mockingbird or a Cooper’s Hawk gliding overhead. Dog came along with me for my ramble, and a good time was had by all.

The winter season is still early, and I hope we can have many more days like this one to enjoy. I hope the bitter, windy days and overcast skies are gone for a good, long while.