A Bloy and his Blog

There’s nothing like a walk in the woods, even in winter.
Taken at the UW Arboretum today.

Yesterday I headed over to Vilas Park to hike around a bit. I wasn’t the only one taking advantage of winter recreation there.

read the rest of: Winter in Vilas Park

A few random thoughts inspired by the brutally cold weather we’ve been having…

1. I saw a few finches hanging out and chirping in a tree outside the building at work this morning. When I see small creatures like that surviving in sub-zero temperatures, I’m just amazed. How does such a little, warm blooded animal generate enough heat to keep from freezing to death?

2. Do you ever wonder about the Native peoples that populated this area hundreds and thousands of years ago? How on Earth did they get along in their wigwams during bitter cold spells? Makes it hard to complain when you imagine what they had to deal with, doesn’t it?

3. Often during bad winter storms, or below zero temps, some people invariably proclaim they’re ready to move south. When I hear that I think, “no thank you.” Moving in that direction means more heat and humidity in the summer. As bad as winter can get in Wisconsin, I’d rather deal with extreme cold and snow than extreme heat and humidity.

I saw Digital Photography School‘s post on how to photograph fire today, and I remembered some fire photo experiments I tried while camping last summer.

read the rest of: Thoughts of summer campfires

In spite of the hassles that come with the record amounts of snow, it really was quite beautiful this morning. I decided to put on my hiking boots and get out there with my camera, before all the snow blew off the branches. Below is a shot looking east down Schroeder Road.

read the rest of: Hiking in a winter wonderland

After a delicious (and very filling) Thanksgiving dinner, my father, sister, her friend Dennis, and I went for a short walk in the late afternoon sun.

read the rest of: Giving thanks for shadows

My sister Barbra and my father Wil. Taken on Thanksgiving Day at Mondovi, Wisconsin.