Out in the Woods

 Dave snapped these pics for me while he was out grooming our ski trails this week.




There is something absolutely magical about immersing oneself into the silence of a winter woods.

Not that it IS silent -- there are the calls of the birds, for one thing.

But there you are, just you, uncrowded, alone...   Not that you ARE alone... if you look at the tracks, you'll see that in this part of the trail system near Hidden Lake in a black spruce bog, we share the planet with the world's largest snowshoe hare. At least, looking at his huge pawprints, one might think so.

And squirrels. And rabbits.  Foxes. Sometimes the sweep in the snow of an owl's wing. Deer. Wolf tracks.  Just because one doesn't see, or hear, does not mean it is not there.

Still, it is good to simply pause, listen to the silence, and let your soul catch up.

Our @20 km of trails are uncrowded, but we are far from the only place up here you can slide your nordic skis.  Algonquin Park has some trails.  So do the Friends of the Frost at  the Leslie Frost Centre. And there is always Arrowhead Park, with a world class network of both recreational and racing trails on offer.

You should come.