Is Winter Here??

Yesterday the temps were near 80 - summerlike.  It started to rain about 5 this morning with a few snow flakes mixed in.  The high was in the low 40's and in the mountains we got snow.  I pulled the camper up to Island Park to set up a deer hunting camp.
Snow was falling, quaking aspen were quaking with cold and after parking the camper, I went after some firewood for the camp.  Everything was wet, so I got some pitchy standing lodgepole pine wood and stored it under the trailer for next week.  Here are a couple of pictures of the snow storm mixed with fall colors.

As I was coming out of the mountains snow was spitting on me as the sun was setting.  The snow storm reflected the beautiful orange and yellow colors for less than two minutes.  I had to stop and shoot different angles of the clouds.

Another wild day in Idaho.

Remember Whensday #2 - My Maturnal Grandparents.

As a young boy, at times I was asked to stay with my maturnal grand parents John and Clara Miller in their home to help them with their chores.  They were in their 80's and both lived over 90.  They milked cows by hand, raised pigs, chickens, did not have running water in their home and in the winter, I remember the water bucket was frozen in the morning.

Here they are when they were young.

Here they are shortly before Grandad passed away.

Here is a page from my mother's journal of her family.  My mom is the little girl standing between her mother and father.  The other three pictures are of her father, who was a fun loving man.  Mom grew up on the west side of Teton Valley, Idaho in the Cedron area.

Fall is here

With snow predicted by Wednesday, it is time for the leaves to change and to fall off.  I wish the fall would stay longer with the colorful leaves and the snow would allow the trees to shed their leaves.  I remember when heavy snows come with the leaves still on the aspens, many are broken off because of the heavy snow on the leaves.

Last week I took these pictures of aspens turning in Island Park.

On the desert, the chokecherries are changing with the berries still hanging on.  Does this mean a hard winter?  Does and hard winter mean a lot of snow or just very cold temps with a little snow?

Have a wonderful wild day where ever you are and spend some time outdoors.

Sky Watch Friday - Sunrise over Henrys Lake.

The fishing on Henrys Lake is best before the sun rises - but it is usually interupted by the beautiful colors of the sunrise itself.
To enjoy other photos of the sky go to Sky Watch Friday.