Several times today, I would look up at the sun, drop whatever I was doing, and run to get my camera. This morning, I had just pulled the food sled (that’s the plastic sled we put three 5-gallon buckets of dog food onto, and drag around the dog yard so we don’t have to carry all that weight) into the yard, when I saw this oddity. The clouds created a band just over the sun, so that I could look directly at it, but not below or above it. It was this faint, glowing orb, on a bed of unbearably bright light. By the time I sprinted over to the cabin to get the camera, thicker clouds had moved in (that’s how fast they were going!), but here’s what I got. That little ball above the bright clouds is our sun.

After I finished in the yard, I figured I might as well shoot some of the ice that’s formed on the plants, since I had my telephoto/macro lens on already.

This evening…wait, 3:30 isn’t the evening. This afternoon, when taking Ashlee and Macgee out for their potty break, the sun was setting behind the same layer of thin clouds.

After sleeping in until 8am, we awoke to find more snow falling from the sky. It was overcast most of the day, with intermittent snow showers. Not good photography weather, especially since we were also occasionally enveloped in fog/clouds.

I took advantage of free weekend minutes, and called my brother Justin, and my mom and dad. Having a blog means people can keep track of what I’m doing without my having to talk to everyone, but hearing the voices of my family is a pleasure that cannot be replaced with email, instant messenger, or WordPress.

Tonight, the sky is clearing, so the temperature is dropping. We gave extra straw to the dogs, so they’ll be cozy in their houses. We are forecast to get more snow, but I suppose that’s inevitable up here.

With all the snow, it’ll be time to trade the ATV for the sled soon. We’ve been running 12 to 13 dogs with the ATV, but apparently we’ll cut that back for the sled. Probably so we have a chance at stopping if we need to. We’ve definitely had the ATV dragged over the snow with the brakes locked and the wheels turned, with two people on the ATV. That’s some power!

Here’s a photo I took on Tuesday, when Skippy was off for Veteran’s Day and got to ride along with the boss on the ATV.

One system moved through (see the Nov. 9th video) and dumped about 6 inches on us, plus some really fun drifts with that wind. The 10th was calmer, but look at what was on its way:

We finally saw the bay for the first time in a few days, as well.

That storm front up there dumped another 5 inches of snow on us. The edges of the fields, where the snow tends to drift more, has snow up past my knees. I waded across the field behind our cabin and took these shots (brace yourself, there’s a lot):

Was that too much? A photo overdose, maybe? Or was that okay?

It started snowing early this morning, with wind gusts up to 50mph. It was totally overcast, with no view further than 1/4 mile. All in all, a mildly depressing day. So why not make a video?!

I was finishing up some work on my computer this morning, when Skippy said I should go out and take some pictures of the imminent sunrise. Also on my to-do list for the morning: using the outhouse and then feeding the sled dogs, the usual routine. What ensued, once I stepped outside, can only be described as the unavoidable pull of photography on my sight and mind. You might use the term “addiction,” if you so chose.

It started out rosy, contrasting nicely with the white-capped mountains.

I took a few pictures, and went back inside to suit up and complete the other two items on the list. I stepped back outside, and the view had become even more beautiful. I ran back in and grabbed my camera and tripod.

Okay, that finished, I went back inside to put away my camera and tripod. I made it halfway up the path to the outhouse before turning to look and see everything go from beautiful to mind-numbingly amazing. Back to the house, grab the camera and tripod, run!

In total, I took 130 pictures this morning. My hands were numb (it was 24 degrees F), I was covered in snow (there are 6 inches of snow on the ground, more where it drifts), and I still had to go to the bathroom. But I think I managed to capture at least a little of the beauty we saw this morning!