Thursday, December 28, 2017

Christmas, or close to it, in the Rockies

Last week, our family was blessed to have a few days in the Rocky Mountains before Christmas. The bitter cold snap that is now bringing temperatures below -20C with extra nasty wind chills beyond -30 hadn't quite arrived. Lee and I had some wonderful hikes around Old Fort Point, through the Valley of Five Lakes, and around Patricia Lake. The stars were incredible on two of the five nights we were there, and we even saw three "shooting stars" from the Geminids meteor shower. Our kids joined us on a couple of hikes, and we had some nice hot tub and games time together, too.

Below are some of my favourite nature shots from our trip, and you'll notice a new header at the top of these moodlings. I have a thing for mountain streams, so there's also a video clip below. Enjoy!


Looking down at the Athabasca River in the morning...


Pyramid mountain...


What silence looks like...


More silence...


Took us a long walk to find these red chairs...


My favourite Christmas tree...



Yup, that's me doing a somersault on the Fifth Lake...


Long winter shadows...


Open water in a limestone karst...


Sunset on a 10 km hiking day...


A smart friend...


Disappearing mountains...


A birch tree (did you know they're all one organism?)...


My partner enjoying a sunny spot...


Another sunset...


Another spectacular sunset view...


God so loved us that God gave us Christmas... and such beauty!

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