No sooner had I lamented January’s dearth of snow than our first substantial winter storm dropped a much-anticipated and greatly appreciated 7 inches in our corner of the country. As we all know, not each snowfall is created equal. While we have lived through many a blizzard, this most recent meteorological event allowed each snowflake to float straight out of the sky and drift softly to its landing site, be it the ground, a tree, bush, or flower, where it remained for the next couple of days without being blown about.
Don’t you just love to awaken to a white world which appears not only much purer but also far quieter, in which all sounds are swallowed by the cottony character of crystallized water? To watch the sun set the crystals asparkle? To be awed by the magnificence of trees flocked in tufts of white? To find and name unusual wintry creatures, such as the Snowy Platypus draped over a bough in one of the photos below?
Once the storm had moved on and the remaining clouds been dispersed, the blue sky and sunshine beckoned. My husband and I laced up our Sorels and walked some of our neighborhood streets and alleys, stepping into tire tracks or making our own, enjoying the day’s pristineness and utter splendor. Grateful for the snow, hopeful for more. As I’m writing these lines, the forecast promises a few more inches for this week.
To enlarge a photo, click on it.
Snow is so beautiful just after it has fallen, so pristine, so pure. But then the effect gets ruined by people like us going about our daily business, trampling on it or driving through it, and soon that exquisite beauty is just a distant, faded memory. Is this a metaphor, I wonder?
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I think nature harbors many metaphors, but we are not always open to receiving them. I’m just grateful for all the beauty it keeps bestowing on us.
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Lovely post. We haven’t had a good thick covering of snow yet, so I envy you! Enjoy!
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Thank you, Cathy. This particular beauty has already been recycled, but we are getting ready for another serving. I hope you will receive your fair share, too.
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Amazing photos!
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Thank you kindly. ⛄
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da hast du sehr schönes im schnee entdeckt. das schlafende oder wachende tier auf dem ast, toll. auch die blumen mit hut sehr schön. und der muffelige busch, der noch ausruhen möchte und sich deshalb die schneedecke über den kopf gezogen hat. lach. tolle fotos! liebe grüße aus dem regnerischen berlin.
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Ich danke Dir für Deine Beobachtungen und Beschreibungen. Der Busch hat sich tatsächlich die Decke über den Kopf gezogen und ist nochmals eingeschlafen. 😊
Winterliche Grüße zurück nach Berlin,
Tanja
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*gg* hat spaß gemacht.
😊
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Herrlich, Tanja ❄
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Das war es wirklich, liebe Brigitte. Herzlichen Dank.
Tanja
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Wunderschön und soviel Schnee
LG Andrea
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Dankeschön, liebe Andrea, wir haben es sehr genossen.
Winterliche Grüße zurück nach Deutschland,
Tanja
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Nice shots
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Thank you, I’m glad you like them. ❄⛄❄
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From childhood on Long Island (NY) I remember how quiet the world becomes during and shortly after a snowfall. Sometimes the only sound was the scraping of the aluminum shovel on the sidewalk as I cleared a path.
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The silence is often one of the first things I notice when I step outside in the morning after a snowfall and I treasure that rare experience.
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So glad you got the much-needed snow. I, too, love the hushed quality of snow during and right after a storm.
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Thank you, Laurie. This hushed silence is a memorable part of many snowfalls.
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And the silence combined with the muted colors makes winter even more memorable.
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So true! ❄❄❄
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Beautiful fresh snow. Enjoy! 😊
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Beautiful indeed. Thank you so much.
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My pleasure. 😊
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I like your post written in praise of snow. There is much beauty to be found in a landscape covered in snow. Thanks for sharing these impressive photos with us, Tanja!
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Thank you, Peter. There is much to be praised in winter’s beauty, as you know very well yourself. 🙂
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I see that there has been a lot of snow there!
Your images are great❣️
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Thank you, Luisa, the snow was very welcome. ❄❄❄
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Finally you have got your long awaited and desired snow! And your pictures show as a winter wonderland!
Enjoy it as long as it lasts!
Kindest regards,
Christa
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I didn’t mention that all the snow has melted already (it was 60 degrees yesterday!). But a storm is predicted for this evening and we are keeping our fingers crossed for me.
It’s not unusual for the Front Range to get a good dumping and have very little of it left a few days later, which is different from what is happening Up North!
Take care,
Tanja
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I looked ghe 60 degrees Fahrenheit up, which is plus 15 degrees Celsius, no wonder that all the beauty is already gone. My fingers are crossed for you for tonight!
We are also in the path of quite a weather cocktail…. first, temperatures climbing up to plus 7 Celsius, followed by rain and snow….. We‘ll see how it will work out.
Take care and enjoy the snow….
Regards,
Christa
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Thank you, Christa. I hope it will be a good, productive snowfall for all of us. All of Colorado is still in need of moisture, so we are waiting with bated breath.
Best,
Tanja
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That looks like a big snow alright!
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It was sorely needed, M.B. But as is typical around here, all that big snow melted within a few days, except for in shaded areas. We are hoping for more!
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Beautiful…and cold for sure!
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Thank you, Valerie. It was a wonderful snowfall and the temperature wasn’t brutally cold, which made for a number of lovely winter days. ❄❄❄
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Your winter wonderland is beautiful, Tanja! I, too, love to watch snow fall and then to see it under sunny skies…..those first days are the best!
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Thank you, Donna. I think snow is one of the most intriguing and enchanting weather phenomena we get to experience. Just think of kids and puppies react when they experience their first snowfall. 🙂 ❄⛄
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Beautiful pictures, Tanja! I am happy that you have the privilege of enjoying a snowy winter. I simply love a white wonderland; but sadly I stay a few thousand miles from the closest such heaven, and have seen snow only twice in my life – the first time being at the fag end of my 20s! Do enjoy and make the most of it! 🙂
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Thank you, Narendra. I’m lucky to have lived in different regions throughout my life where snow does fall and it has never lost its magic. I imagine that seeing it for the first time in one’s 20s would be a very memorable experience.
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Absolutely, Tanja; and more so because my wife was also seeing snow for the first time along with me. And then a decade or so later I had the privilege of taking my parents and son along for them to see snow fall for the first time! Truly memorable moments! 🙂
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I hope you and your family will get to experience it again, Narendra. ❄❄❄
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Thank you so much, Tanja! 🙂 🙏🏻
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I just love the snow. There’s a beautiful softness in the silence thick snow brings.
Alas, we don’t get it that cold in Melbourne, but the surrounding low-lying hills can sometimes get a sprinkle or two.
I still remember the crunch of walking through the snow when in Austria on a skiing holiday when I was in my twenties…..and London in 1978. I think it was a rare winter that snow stayed on the ground in London that year(?). I spent several winter holidays skiing here in Australia, but such a short season we have.
Love your photos showing the details in your local area. I can ‘hear’ the sharp crunch of each footstep in your images.
Surprisingly, many of the books I’ve read over the years have had their location in the Himalayas and are about mountain climbing. 🙂
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Thank you, Vicki. Walking through fresh snow is, without a doubt, stimulating to many senses.
The fact that your reading often takes you to the Himalayas is likely a sign that you are in touch with your inner yeti. But your inner yeti has nothing abominable about her. 🙂
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Liebe Tanja, ich genieße Euren SChnee gleich mit, denn wir hatten in diesem Winter keinen Schnee. Dabei ist die Welt immer so fotogen unter der weißen SChneedecke.
Herzliche Grüße
MAren
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Dankeschön, liebe Maren. Auch wenn die weiße Pracht nach einigen Tagen schon wieder vollständig geschmolzen ist, genießen wir sie, so oft sie kommt und so lange sie bleibt.
Vielleicht bringt der Spätwinter ja noch eine Schneedecke in Deine Gegend.
Genieße Deine Wochenende,
Tanja
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I spotted your Snow Platypus right away: what a clever image! The silence after a snowfall is one of my favorite experiences, and a quiet snow is even better. I’m sure I’ve mentioned to you the experience I can’t forget: going out into the Black Forest on the morning after a snowfall like this, with not a sound anywhere, and feet of snow.
I know of only one Christmas carol that’s captured the experience: “In the Bleak Midwinter”. I can’t imagine that anyone who’s known “snow on snow on snow” ever forgets it.
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Thank you for the link… what a sweet rendition of a new and unfamiliar carol!
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Thank you, Linda. I’m glad I’m not the only one “seeing things” in snow. That platypus was poised to leap off the bough. 🙂
Taking a walk through the Black Forest in utter silence through feet of snow sounds heavenly, as does the beautiful carol you linked to.
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You very nearly make me miss snow, but naaaah. Much nicer to be warm and not needing to shovel. For desert I get to see the best part of a snow day here. Thanks for sharing!!! 😊🙏☃️
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😊
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Loved your pics, Tanja, especially of your neighborhood. One of my favorites snow sights is the road before it is plowed. Hoping you get more snow—the snow is gone here, as well. Very confusing for me, because it makes me think it’s time to get the garden organized. 😉
Cheers,
Julie
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Thank you, Julie. I also like to be the first to walk through snow, even though I’m always slightly reluctant to destroy its beautiful pristineness.
The weather’s back and forth, with 60+ degree days to below freezing, is very confusing for humans, and I suspect for more-than-humans also.
I can relate to your gardener’s impatience, but here any serious gardening is discouraged before the middle of May. That seems a looong time off!
Enjoy your weekend,
Tanja
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Truly, sunshine on new fallen snow is one of my favourite winter sights, as well as the glittering frost on tree branches. If it wasn’t for these highlights, winter would be hard to tolerate when it can last for almost half the year in our area.
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I think you are right, Candice. Winter’s harshness is alleviated by its many beautiful sights.
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I liked “cottony character” and “flocked in tufts …”. Beautiful words to augment the wonderful photos. But the platypus! It took a keen eye to spot that pattern in a grand field of snow. Thanks for sharing winter.
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Thank you, Doug. I’m glad you enjoyed this glimpse into our Colorado winter. As always, I appreciate your attention to the little details of what I write and how I write it. 😊
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Beautiful! Now as I moved down to warm place what I miss is winter vibes with gorgeous snow❄️☃️🌨
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Thank you, Tanooki. Whenever I think it’s too cold or icy, I remind myself of how much I would miss snow if I lived in an area without it. 😊
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