©Bert Gildart: Four degrees here this morning in Montana’s Flathead Valley, and the temperature is a reflection of the conditions that have enveloped us these past few days. Snow now blankets our little section of the world, but it is not a time to hibernate, rather it is an ideal time to get out the cross-country skis.

It’s a perfect way in fact to end the old year and begin the new. It’s a perfect way to experience the world from a different perspective.

That’s what we may do today taking our cue from the beauty of winter as we experienced it yesterday at Blacktail, a section of land managed by the Forest Service that is laced with winter trails. We were joined by two friends, Pat and John Clay, who bought our first Airstream, and, as we all joke, are still good friends.

The trail which we skied is called the Alpine Trail and it courses about six miles. It’s not a particularly lofty trail, but is located about 3,000 feet above Flathead Lake.

Depending on which parking spot you start from, the trail either climbs or descends about a thousand feet. Deer, moose and elk are some of the creatures that inhabit the area and in the fresh snow we saw dozens of trails testifying to their presence. At several places along the trail the woods open up providing commanding vistas of Flathead Lake and the Swan Mountain Range to the east.

LURE OF THE WINTER WOODS

For me, at any rate, I venture into the woods in this way for the solitude and peace one finds in such settings. Up here, sounds are derived from nature. Grey jays interjected their calls and occasionally there was the swish of soft snow cascading through branches of fir and spruce.

And then, of course, there were the spectacular views of the valley below unmarred from this distance by the scurrying of people–going frantically sometimes–about their business. Though I have no particular New Year’s resolutions to share, today, on January 1, 2008, I’m reminded, after enjoying a perfectly tranquil setting yesterday, of the frantic nature we humans force upon ourselves and others–and of the chaos it sometimes creates not only in the valley that yesterday seemed so tranquil, but in the world at large.

I guess what I’m suggesting is that if you are surrounded by the winter woods, take a little time to get out in them. Here at any rate, one really good way to do that is to whisk along some cross-country ski trail, stopping occasionally to appreciate what may well have lured you here in the first place.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

 

This entry was posted on Tuesday, January 1st, 2008 at 11:04 am and is filed under Natural History/Conservation, View Point. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.