along the trail

Although there is no snow on the ground today in Bend, Oregon, it takes only a short drive West toward the mountains to find a Winter paradise. On this forest trail, closed to cars for the season, the public can spend carefree hours walking, cross-country skiing, or snowshoeing. There are those of you who follow this blog who see nothing glamorous in having cold toes, ears and nose, and who also define good exercise as rolling from back to stomach on a chaise lounge under a gentle tropical sun. To you, outdoor cold weather activities probably has little appeal. Such ventures are not for everybody. Notwithstanding, in the above picture, the hardy gang decked out in fleece and gortex, march forward joyously and rhythmically, December's snowsong drummed by their boots. As they pass, they acknowledge intuitively that the camera-toting stranger in similar uniform is an ally, and like themselves, a lover of movement in the iced-white world of Winter. I hear their footsteps recede in the distance and by their dissipating presence, I feel strangely warmed.