It’s Cold

The weather has been cold and clear lately, – perfect for the growing of ice crystals.  The pictures below are a small part of the result of two ten minute photo safaris in our garden area, – one yesterday, and one today.  Choosing which pictures to show out of the two hundred or so, took much longer than shooting them.

The crystals have grown quite big, – they are almost like small plants with leaf rosettes, and they are everywhere on grassy areas.

On the tree stump, a bit higher off the ground, they are not quite so big.

The small heather plants are nearly covered by ice crystal “plants”.

They tend to “grow” in clumps.

As happened with the star crystals last week, I am reluctant to step on any of these wonders.

But it is impossible to move without doing so.

When stepping on to the grass, you can hear a faint sound, as if millions of miniature glasses fall and break.

… or like you are wading through heaps of tiny, tiny glass shards.

Below are some more photos, – I couldn’t stop myself  …  

On some of the photos I have tweaked the contrast quite a bit to better show off the fabulous patterns.

The last photo below, I also turned to gray scale. Some of the crystals are very, very thin and transparent.

I hope all of you in the northern hemisphere are enjoying the winter time.

Eldrid

Falling Stars

The weather has been very good lately, – what snow there was around Christmas rained away, and this last week the weather has been cold and clear, with no snow on the ground.

As we drove home early this afternoon, the skies were gray, and we noticed a few tiny white specs falling through the air.

Walking from the garage to the house, I suddenly stopped short, exclaiming: There are stars on the ground!

I immediately put my bag down and got my camera out.

Please don’t step on any of them before I have taken some photos, I asked my husband.

Then I had to laugh at the impossibility of my own request; -  the stars were everywhere, and we could not move without stepping on several at a time.

There was more than enough both to photograph and to walk on.

They were all over the wooden steps…

… and on the grass…

… and on the cold stones.

We do not often see snow crystals like this here, – most often the snow comes down in big flurries, – not tiny stars like these.

We were lucky to spot them when we did. A few minutes later it was raining.

Just a few tiny drops, however, – and then we got a little bit more snow. But not stars this time.

Does walking on stars mean good luck?

I hope so.

Eldrid

Autumn by the Roadside

Both the calendar, the colours, the temperature, and the shorter days tell us that summer is definitely over, and autumn has arrived.

The strawberries we feasted on this summer are finished, but the plants are still a feast for the eyes each time I walk past.

Last week we had some very nice weather, so I brought my camera along as I went for a walk.

At this time of year, we are almost sure to have frost during the night as soon as the skies are clear.

It usually melts when the sun comes out, – at least in places where there are no shadows.

I like the look of the frosty-edged leaves.

It gives each leaf a definition we do not usually see.

These are almost like bird feathers.

The grass in this roadside ditch would not normally catch my eye. But on this day the frost is about to melt when I am passing, and the sun makes everything glitter and shine.

At the top, the ice has turned to water, but further down it is still partly ice.

Looks like something is growing inside the drops, but it is just the reflection of the grass below.

The three photos above are all details picked from the photo below:

Moving the camera closer into the ditch, it reveals treasure upon treasure.

Strings of pearls everywhere.

Further along, there are more interesting plants, like this moss….

.. and a mushroom in permanent shadow, where the ice has not melted since the first frosty night.

More glittering grass….

… and frosted ferns.

Inevitably, we got some more rain, and the beauties above are almost all gone.

This week I have been admiring the birch tree outside the window by my sewing space. Each day the leaves have turned a little more yellow.

We will probably have to cut it down soon, as, when it sowed itself many years ago,  it decided to grow too close to the house.

I kind of like the light filtering through the leaves, but I would not want it to come in through the windows on a stormy day.

Eldrid

Spring Report

Every year I take photos and post a report on the progress of spring on or around May 1st. This year we were travelling on May 1st, so the photos on that exact day shows the spring progress on Iceland, which varied a lot even within quite short distances.

The photo above was taken at Jökulsàrlon, a lagoon created by a retracting glacier. Icebergs break off the glacier and float round and round in the lagoon till they melt, as the opening is too narrow for them to float out into the ocean. They are quite a sight.

A few miles from the iceberg lagoon, we stopped to look at this old church, – the last one to be built in the old Icelandic manner with turf covered walls and roof. The dandelions were blooming on the roof, sheep and lambs were out and about nearby, so this was infinitely more spring like than the icebergs.

This primrose was blooming on one of the turfed walls of the olde houses in the photo below.

And this low bush similar to pussy willows was also in bloom:

I am not sure what the correct name of this bush would be.

As for the home scene, I will have to make do with before and after photos this year.

The two photos above were taken on April 26th before we left.

And here are the after photos of the same views….

… taken on May 6th.

We seem to have moved backwards into winter instead of forward to spring.

Eldrid

Spring Status Report

Last year I posted my first May 1st report on the progress of spring.

Spring was very cold and rainy then, – even snowy, – so there was not much greenery to be seen when May arrived.

This spring seemed to be progressing along the same lines for a while, but the last week’s fine weather has boosted everything big time.

Suddenly the woods were all green almost from one day till the next. My narcissuses in the photo above have all come out during the last two days.

This morning the ones in the shadiest corner had not come out yet.

However, this evening, just after sundown, I took the photo above, and they are nearly all out here as well. With this kind of weather, they will all be finished in a week, I think.

I’ll just have to enjoy them while they last.

The earliest rhododendron bush will soon open up completely.

The tulips by the south wall have been blooming for a few days already. In the photo they look like they are a red and yellow mix due to the direct sunshine, but in reality they are only red.

I love the way the narcissuses brighten up the garden even when it is nearly dark.

So in conclusion, this year spring has behaved itself much better than it did last year, – so far at least. The last week has been excellent, – even better than most of last year’s summer. 

Eldrid

Spring?

Today is spring equinox, and in some places we see signs of springlike activities, like snowdrops popping their heads out of the ground. But in other places, it may take some time yet before spring arrives.

Last year I posted some winter photos which were taken at our daughter’s place. I also took the photo above of the same playground that was posted here, but from a slightly different angle. Also, snow like this was to be expected in January.

A few days ago we visited again, and I took the photos below. It is the same playground, although you can hardly tell because of the snow.

The structure sticking out of the snow is the top of the swings.

You can just glimpse the top wire of the fence in the path our grandson made when crawling through the snow.

It snowed when we were there, and it has snowed since.

The ground has been covered since October, so everyone is weary of snow, although the children are having fun from time to time.

- I’ll better pop  out and check if spring is on its way yet.

- Naaaah, doesn’t look like it.

- I think spring needs some help.

- WE WANT SPRING NOW!  WE WANT SPRING NOW!

 

- Let’s go and do something else while we are waiting.

 

Today it is raining, so there is hope.

Eldrid

Storm

There was a lot of fuss in the media about a storm that was going to reach our coast this Friday.  Nothing like the one that hit Queensland, of course, but still, there were headlines with ominous warnings like: “Secure everything outside”, “Stay safely indoors”, and such. Media always love a storm, and will make the most of it, it seems.

Friday morning was quite calm, – at least compared to our “expectations” by then. I had to go out on a few errands, and decided to bring my camera, just in case. By midday it had picked up a bit, but I was still able to fill petrol without any trouble, – mainly because there was no rain yet.  There were some heavy waves thumping onto the breakwater pier just below the shop, so I took some photos there.

Since I was now halfway to the beach at the end of the road, I decided to go to see how it looked there by now.

On the way I passed our graveyard. When the tide is high and there also is a storm, the waves will splash onto the lower part of the graveyard. It looked quite wet in places.

Further out the fjord, the waves now came crashing on to the shore.

Near the end of the road, it was even wilder.

Some of the birds seemed to enjoy themselves in this kind of weather.

This boat house does not look quite safe:

It was still standing when I left, however, and has weathered many more storms than this one during its time.

At first I was alone at the beach, but after a while a few more people turned up.

Waves are fascinating to look at.

The wind had increased a bit, but still no rain.  The clouds were sailing across the sky at full speed, and sometimes they cracked, so the light was changing by the minute.

Most of the photos above I took out of the car window, but I also went outside for a little while, – after having parked the car facing the wind to make sure the door would not be ripped off when I opened it.  There was no real danger that would happen, – it’s just a habit I have aquired after having lived in this area for many years.

My fingers were quite stiff after a few minutes outside. I had to hold onto the camera with a firm grip, and the wind was quite cold.

When I left the beach, the wind had not gotten worse. The waves were still quite rough for many hours afterwards,- but nothing out of the ordinary for a winter storm.

We are of course lucky that it was not as bad as, or worse than, was predicted. That can happen too.

We would probably be wise to believe it every time they cry “Wolf” regarding the weather, – but it gets harder the more often, and louder, they cry.

Eldrid

Spring again

Since this blog is the closest I will get to a diary, I will post some spring photos to be compared with last year’s spring, – and then hopefully next year and many years after.

May 1st will be a good date for comparison, – easy to remember.

Yesterday I took some photos of the woods.

There is just a hint of green about the woods, approximately as in the photo I posted on April 15th last year.

Only my very earliest small daffodils are out (close to the tree trunks). The others have yellowing buds. No leaves on the fruit trees yet, – or what is left of them after the havoc wreaked on them last autumn by the deer.

Last year a friend brought a bouquet of narcissus and a branch of pear tree in full bloom on my birthday.

It has been snowing both yesterday and today, but luckily it is melting at once. By law, we should have had the winter tyres off the car nearly three weeks ago, but we did not change them till this weekend. The roads have been snowy more than once during that time.

Not much greenery on the trees, but the pussy willow is in full bloom. Looking out of the window, it looks so nice with the sun shining in between the spells of snow, but the air is bitterly cold, so there is no going out without a winter jacket on.

Now we want some warmer temperatures soon.

Eldrid

A Trip to Town, – and Be Warned: More Ice

It has been raining for a few days now, and for once, the rain has been very welcome.  Most times we complain about rainy weather, as we think we get way too much of it, but at this stage almost anything is better than more snow.

A couple of days before the weather turned, I made a trip into town. The occasion was my biannual mammogram, and then I also took the opportunity to run some other errands, like taking my new computer back in, to check why it did not connect with our other computers, – and maybe also get a new printer. Fabric shopping was not in the original plans, – but who can resist dropping in on the almost-next-door quilt shop while waiting for the computer to be fixed (- or that’s what I thought it would be, anyway)?

A trip out of here always starts with a ferry crossing. Because of the recent snow storm, the sea was a bit rough, but calmed down closer to the mainland. As we neared the landing, I suddenly heard some unusual banging and crashing. Looking out, I saw we were passing through an area of drift ice, – the ice further into the fjord had been broken up by the waves caused by the recent storm, and was now drifting out towards the sea.

It happens from time to time that ice can be a problem for traffic in this area, but not very often.

The sea gulls seemed to enjoy having some new perches while on the lookout for food, though.

During the 80 kilometer drive, there is a lot to see along the road, and this time I was on my own and not in a hurry, so I had time to stop and take pictures as often as I wished. Higher temperatures had been forecast, so I though perhaps this might be my last chance this winter to photograph some of the ice formations along the road sides.

With the kind of temperatures we have been “blessed” with this winter, every small or larger water trickle has frozen to ice.

Icicles are hanging off the cliffs everywhere along the road sides.

Sometimes it looks almost as if a monster has opened its mouth, baring its long and sharp fangs.

Some places that do not usually have a noticeable waterfall, now sport large cascades of ice:

One would think that having had almost no rain for months, these trickles would dry up, but some of them seem to have an endless supply of water coming from one place or other, and they grow and grow..

… and grow…

There are also really large waterfalls to be seen from the road, and they are especially impressive in their frozen state:

Some people climb frozen waterfalls like this, just for the sport, or thrill, or whatever it is that drives them, – but I am more than content just looking at them. I would not dare to risk any of my limbs by stepping onto something like this:

However, the colours are magnificent. Imagine the early morning sun shining onto this frozen waterfall, – that could have been the inspiration for this quilt that I made 17 years ago:

Blue greens have always been favourite colours of mine, so maybe that is why I am so fascinated by ice. However, the sight of the green masses if ice can also trigger quite different associations. It suddenly crossed my mind that it looks like Mother Earth is having a severe cold, and has mislaid all of her handkerchiefs:

Ick!!

I guess we have all been five years old at some time, and that young person still pops its head up now and then

I will have to make an effort to think of it as just frozen water, so I will not be put off by greens in the future.

Ice formations are everywhere, not just by the road sides, but all the way up the mountain sides. When the temperature rises, they melt away from the rocks and fall down, and they can be a real danger to passers by on the road underneath, – and so are avalanches. Two days after I took the photo above a young woman had a narrow escape as her car was buried under an avalanche close to where I was standing when I took the photo.

This was taken on my way home in the early evening, and the setting sun adds an extra glow to the landscape, and to man made structures.

The water that seeps out everywhere is also the main source of most of the elecric power produced in this country.  This area has quite a few plants which produce hydroelectricity….

… a fact that is difficult to hide.

But we like to keep warm.

I almost forgot to show you what I bought in the quilt shop. When thinking about it afterwards, I was a bit surprised that none of the fabrics had the least resemblance of ice or snow, – instead they were rather summery:

Cute, pink roses.

No project planned for these yet, but they are delicious to look at.

Ok, – one blue green fabric,  but only because it was on sale.

—–

It is snowing again.

Eldrid

The Beauty of Winter

In my last post I promised, (or threatened, maybe), to post more winter stuff on my blog, so here it goes.

In February we visited our eldest daughter, who live more inland, close to the large glacier. We stayed the night, and woke up the next day to minus 22,5 degrees C outside, which was my personal coldest this winter.

Outside there was a clear, blue sky, and the fog, or “frost smoke” as we call it, was drifting down along the river . All the trees were covered in hoar frost.

After a while the sun peeked out above the mountain ridge…

… adding a pink colour to the frost smoke.

When the fog drifted away, the sky outside was blue, – very blue!

The frost made some trees look like huge snow balls.

Frost and snow also covered the playground where our grandchildren usually play….

… and even the spiderwebs on the outside wall.

They looked almost like lace curtains.

On seeing them, my husband commented drily: “Boy, those spiders have a lot of shovelling to do”.

Eldrid