trekking to Dhumpas

trekking to Dhumpas –

tray of red chilies

drying in the warm spring sun

Nepalis love chilies and they grow them everywhere they can. This beautiful tray, its blue border complementing the shiny red of the peppers, is just sitting on a bamboo bench by the side of the trail on our way to Dhumpas in the Annapurna range.

ice encasing snow

ice encasing snow –

glazed, pendulous, crackled –

reflecting rainbows

 

On the banks of Pilgrim Creek, porous snow glistens with a thin coating of ice. A veneer of fantastically crackled ice with lacy edges lines the shady side of the creek. Shields of snow bordered with ice perch precariously on logs protruding from the running water. In shallow pools the ice forms a curvaceous melange of transparent bubbles. Icicles with bulbous tips hang from every branch, dead leaf, seed pod and bud. Wherever the sun shines on the ice it sparks little glints of red and gold, transforming every dull object into a wonder.

from Ashinoko

from Ashinoko

through a screen of blanched branches

Fujisan rises white

 

This striking view of Fujisan from Ashinoko could be the subject of one of Hokusai’s ukiyo-e woodblock prints –- the snow-capped cone floating serenely in the distance contrasting with bare white branches in the foreground.

mist falling on snow

mist falling on snow –

wild geese huddle near the shore

or perch on slick ice

Cold fog and mist in the morning. Even the Canada Geese with their insulating down look cold, or hunkering down on the slick shelf of ice or huddling close to shore, unperturbed by a Siamese cat trotting past. In the evening, lightning, thunder and freezing rain. Geese all gone.

farm pond half frozen

farm pond half frozen –

wild geese swim and stand on ice –

reflect in water

More snow last night, and with low temperatures and humidity the snow forms into hard, glittering columns. Today the temperature warms a bit, but still well below freezing, and the snow comes down as tiny white pellets and transparent ice needles. On Cattail Pond a large flock of Canada Geese swim in the open water or stand on the edge of the thin ice, their dark forms reflected in the blue-grey water. When I stop, the geese in the water swim to the ice, the larger ganders flapping their wings in an aggressive display.

late winter snowfall

late winter snowfall –

wild geese gone, two crows on ice,

two ducks dip and dive

Scent of snow on the north wind yesterday. By evening the Canada Geese have flown from the iced-over pond. All night the wind blew, dropping half a foot of snow, plastering the north side of trees, piling cotton balls on every bush, leaving fantastic snow sculptures hanging from branches. Today two crows stand in the exact middle of the frozen pond, stark black on white. Of course they fly away when I approach. On another pond, half free of ice and that half covered with snow, two ducks dip and dive. Our gray tabby accompanies me for a walk in the woods, stepping carefully in my footsteps. When we get to the little brook, he balks at the water's edge so I have to catch him and ferry him across.

portrait of the writer

portrait of the writer

as a young man wrapped

in a burgundy blanket

dreaming stories

Portrait of my son, Noah. He is in Idaho, I am in Iowa, but we communicate through Skype. I can see the stories forming behind his eyes. His blog www.athousandsounds.wordpress.com inspired me to start my blog www.curvingback.blogspot.com.