New Year's Day 2013

For New Year's Day, we had a lovely afternoon trek through Armstrong Redwoods State Natural Reserve...

 With all the recent rain, we saw mushrooms galore...

And loads of baby ferns...

The sun peeking through the trees...

Cheerful red berries...

Quite possibly a  fairy or gnome home...

And plenty of water...

The insides of hollow old redwoods are always fun to explore...

And if you're going to explore, it is best to wear the appropriate hat...

Just enjoying the trail...

This is how we do nature study. I don't schedule it anymore, because that turns it into something we don't enjoy nearly as much. We do read topical books, like those about clouds, and such, and we own a dozen field guides. We like Citizen Science projects too!

All in all, this was a fantastic start to a new year!

Baby, It's Cold Outside...

 We have a big rock with a depression out in our front yard that we keep water in for the birds... this is from this morning - the leaves look gorgeous encased in ice!

And the sunrise through the icy fog was beautiful too, but I am always so cold lately!

I'll have more pics to post later, from our hike through the redwoods on New Year's Day, which is, by the way, a fantastic way to start a new year!