More Winter: January 2010

As winter continues, at times I find myself wishing that it will never end. There is something to be said about the sights, smells and the very feel that winter instills in us. Everywhere you look, you see the ravages and harshness of winter...but if you only take the time to look closely, you will be amazed at the delicate and ever changing beauty that the cold creates. Every time I go out I see something different. In finding those things that are different, I find that I am content that in reality that some things never change.

January 21st 2010. Another stunning winter sunset.

January 22nd, 2010. I still haven't gotten tired of these.

Winter Sun over Whitefish Lake.

My good friend Devlin and I went on a brief excursion up Star Meadows and stumbled across this frozen seep. One day its here and the next its gone. Take the time to look and you might be surprised at what you will see.

It is no wonder that my fascination with water also includes ice. It is another example of "one day its here...the next it's gone." If you want to see something cool, get off your butt and go see it. You won't regret it.

Light and Dark and forever in motion. Nothing stays the same, but even things in constant turmoil will never change.

Devlin, someone who enjoys the outdoors as much as I. A good friend.

And that is that as they say. It is easy to forget what you see. A picture might be worth a thousand words but the image is as timeless as the scene it portrays...

Winter 2009 / 20010

There is really no rhyme or reason to the things that I am posting here. The common theme of this and the next few posts is nothing more than winter scenery. Winter is typically a time for slowing down and staying warm. It is also a time for activities that few people partake in. Winter is a time of peace, solitude and silence. It is also a time for being cold. Trust me...it is worth it. Snow shoeing, ice fishing, winter hiking, sledding, skiing are all excellent winter activities. I can't do them all, but the ones I do enjoy are the ones that I hope to be able to experience until the end of my days. Other than the cold...winter is my favorite time of year. Everything is pristine and timeless. There are few things on earth more beautiful than a pure white blanket of snow. Enjoy and keep warm.

Notice the foot prints. Deer, coyotes and other critters make frozen streams into highways. The snow isn't deep yet, but it is still easier going for most. It does look like one or two may have taken a swim. Not for me....

Beaver Lake. I have caught a few dozen salmon this year through the ice. Delicious fish be they smoked, canned or grilled. It is a cheap way to put food on the table and a fun way to tolerate the cold and pass the time.

Something Different...Something Regal

Though this isn't the best picture in the world, I still find it entrancing. The snow that is caked to the branches appear almost lifelike. It is almost as if the tree is trying to remember warmer times. Though you cant see it...it was actually snowing VERY hard while I was taking these pictures. I love the light that streetlamps put out.

More of the same with a different filter setting. By letting in a little more light, things become harsher and crisper but no less interesting. Again...not a great photo, but still worth pondering.

Tea Kettle Mountain and a peek into West Glacier...

A near miss. I decided to cut across this small river while snow shoeing one evening. The snow wasn't the greatest, but the 18 or so inches of fresh powder was still fun to tramp through. While following the river and looking for a "safe" spot to cross I mis-judged and almost got myself in trouble. Not a foot in front of me, the ice suddenly fell in. Two steps back and off to higher ground for me. It would be a little tough to swim with snow shoes on and it would be even harder to breath while being drug under the ice in the grips of a frigid river.

Holidays, family and friends...

December, 2009: The season of giving and the time of Christmas. Christmas 2009 wasn't an earth-shattering event this year. But it certainly was a good one. Last Christmas for the Moseley family was small and for me in particular it was a hectic one. This time last year I was packing my bags and unwrapping presents at the same time in preparation for the trip of a life time to New Zealand. I barely had enough time to enjoy Christmas last year due to the fact that I was boarding a plane just hours after unwrapping gifts. This years Christmas was much more laid back. But prior to Christmas, winter finely struck with full force. The unusual cold still reigned supreme and the camera stayed stowed for much of the season. Here are a few shots to mark the end of 2009.

It sort of speaks for itself. It is a scene played out throughout the world and throughout the country...but for some reason or other, the small town of Whitefish seems to go all out for the Holidays. Every lamp post gets decorated with garland, reefs or lights. Signs and banners and Christmas cheer are evident everywhere you look. Its a great place to be for Christmas. Note the Ice on the windshield. At 20 degrees below zero, 2009 was definitely trying to freeze itself into our memories.

A typical look at driving conditions in Montana during the winter. One can go months without having the tires on the pavement. It is a slick and cold season that typically "slows" down the speed of things.

A side street in the bustling metropolis of Whitefish, MT. Cold but beautiful and full of the holiday Cheer.

"It's Beginning to look a lot like Christmas..."

A very giving and very thankful household scene. Can we say spoiled?

Jake opened one of his Christmas gifts early. He pulls off guilt and innocent better than any dog I have ever seen.

The aftermath. Present (besides the presents) were my parents, my sister's family and my brother from another mother's parents Carol and Gary. It was a great Christmas. And yes...we were all spoiled beyond what we should have been.

Good ol' Maddie. Black dog on white carpet. Thank the heavens for vacuum cleaners.

Something Different...Something Foamy...and misleading. A delicious home brew that my brother-in-law Kevin brought from Utah. I found it humorous that I was drinking a nut brown ale from an Amstel Light bottle in a Budweiser beer glass. You have to be a beer snob to appreciate the joke...

One last shot of Jake doing something he aught not to do. Couches and dogs don't go together very well. He doesn't look too innocent this time...does he?

And that marks the end of 2009. 2009 was a challenging year for many people, myself included. Finding myself adrift again in the great big world has taught me a lot of things. The value of friends, family and people you can count on mean more now than they ever have. I am thankful for what I have and thankful for who I know. It is definitely a good thing. I opened 2009 on a beach in New Zealand with one of my best friends and ended it comphy and secure, surrounded by family and friends. What more could a person ask for?

November, 2009

I have awoken to the reality that I have seriously neglected my blog and the few people who actually view my photos or read my ramblings. It has been several months since I have taken the time to update this thing or process my photos. In short, from November to now, I have been exceedingly busy and have suffered more than my share of procrastination towards doing non work or domestic related things. It isn't because I haven't been using my camera or seeing the world around me...far from it...but more because I think winter has brought on some form of hibernation of the mind. But...here I am posting a few of the more interesting things I have seen over the last few months.

Something Different...

November rushed in this year with obscene cold and a few brutal snow storms. Taking pictures in the snow and cold isn't the most enjoyable thing in the world. Above are a couple of interesting shots of snow falling through a birch tree with an older style sulfur street lamp as a back drop. Interesting lighting. This streetlamp has kept me occupied a couple of times this winter with its eerie glow and changing intensity.

This winter has been a time of stunning sunsets. Growing up, I never remembered seeing much by way of winter sunsets. Typically, winter here is predominantly overcast and when the skies clear...it is typically cold and nasty. Thus, one tends to ignore the outside. I suspect that the reason I don't remember such sunsets isn't because they didn't occur, but more because I failed to notice. I find it interesting, the things one begins to notice as one ages and as life's events tune ones eye to look for those things that are interesting and different.

Something different...Something Dripped

A bit morbid, yes...but still something worth showing. I had one of the best hunting seasons that I have ever had. It won't be remembered because I harvested the biggest deer and it won't be remembered because I had the best experiences. It will be remembered because it was perhaps one of the strangest hunting seasons that I have ever had. I didn't see much by way of large deer this year. What few large bucks that I saw threw me into a succession of events that have me still scratching my head and kicking myself in disappointment. Three times this year I missed trophy bucks. Both instances were at the culmination of some of the hardest hunting that I have ever done. And I have never missed before. But at the end of the season, only ten minutes after flat footing it a couple of miles and literally walking face to face into a monster buck....and missing from 10 feet away...I managed to get this little guy. This marked the end of a great season of seeing wolves, mountain lions, new country and the realization that I am not as young as I used to be...but by God I can still do it and I still love it more than ever. He might be small...but boy does he taste good. Even if I can no longer climb mountains or hike for a week into no man's land and even if I may someday be hunting from a wheel chair...I will still love every second of it.

And that marks the end of a very long ramble. I still have about 2000 photos to go through. Enjoy.

Life is exactly what its Quacked up to be (1)

It has been several weeks since I have picked up the camera for the sake of just going out and taking a few pictures. With hunting season going full swing, I have neglected doing anything even remotely resembling photography. So...I decided to grab the camera and go for a walk down to the river. As usual, the ducks were everywhere. The lighting left a little to be desired and I still have a heck of a time with this lower level Nikon camera, but I am starting to get the hang of it. My goal? To get ducks being ducks. It turned out to be a lot harder than I thought it would be. Getting random shots of a group of dynamically mobile creatures is a major pain in the hind end. It was fun though!

"I think I got water up my nose"

Posing for the hens.

Posing for the drakes.

I was so disappointed that this photo didn't turn out. I thought about trying to "photoshop" it, but decided to leave it alone. It is still an interesting shot of ducks being ducks...

"You can't see me...I am hiding." This is why the hens are colored the way they are...

This blue eyed devil of a goose was a major annoyance. He kept pecking and hissing at me. Evidently he thought I should feed him?

Ahead by a nose...or in this case...bill?

"Yeah...I know I am good looking. Take more pictures!"