Our Last Summer Walk

Winter has taunted us with it's elusive coming long enough. We've had some cold, but not much, enough to freeze some lakes but not the normal temps for this time of year. It's been really nice though. With the soil frozen but no snow on the ground it has allowed us to explore areas along our neighborhood trails that we normally wouldn't due to the boggy nature of some of the lower areas. Last weekend Beck and I went on our last snow free walk until Fairbanks thaws out 6 months from now. The walk was spectacular. We found trails we did not know existed although we had walked past them dozens of times. One trail in particular lead us to the top of a nice little wood knob, maybe 100 feet of elevation above the surrounding area, covered in moss and an old forest. The trees on the knob were primarily birch and aspen which really stood out from the surrounding scrawny black spruce forest. The soft moss forest floor made for a really nice spot to lay down and soak it all in.

Shortly after our walk interior Alaska finally got the respectable snowstorm we've been expecting, leaving behind 4-5 inches of snow and cold temperatures to prevent the snow from melting.
This weekend, Halloween weekend, our temperatures finally reached subzero. Oddly enough winter is starting to feel really good. I know you are probably thinking it's nuts to desire subzero temperatures but the air feels really clean and crisp once your body adjust to it (or you go numb from hypothermia or frost bite).