Vitamin D-lightful

As the sun rose Sunday morning, cloudless blue skies and beautiful snow laden landscapes emerged.  Such weather is a rarity around this neck of the woods, so in the afternoon, I headed outside to get my fill of vitamin D.  Below are a few photos.


There is a maze of trails running along the river
bank near my flat.  While I have explored them at night
with a friend, this was the first time I saw everything
lit up.  The light reveals a different world.



The sun brought out nature's true colors.
Rich blues and oranges danced among the forest
as the sun moved across the horizon.

Sometimes, I think nature likes to poke fun at
human creations.  I suspect that this is supposed
to be a door preventing access to the river...it does
not seem to be working so well in this weather.

While Minnesotans snuggle up in their cozy huts,
the Finns prefer to fish in the elements.  Here you can
see two small trap doors through the ice, and some
twigs to aid in finding the holes after heavy snowfalls.

I've always thought it would be nice to live
in a small red house.  I think this one would do
nicely.  The marshmallow snow-cover on the
roof makes it all the more quaint.

The sun seared through the tall pine forest,
creating an even taller forest of shadows.

While I did pass by a few cross-country skiers, I was
surprised to find that I basically had the trails to myself.
All in all, it was an absolutely gorgeous afternoon.  The
blue skies and intense sun provided a nice respite
from the grey I have grown accustomed to.