Whether intentional or accidental, I'm glad this month's photo blogging challenge theme doesn't specify "holiday" season. Why? Because many our magic moments in December related to the winter season, not Christmas. Add in a couple special Christmas memories and narrowing it down to just five photos is hard!
Winter, like any other time of year, is a great season for being out and about in Canmore. The amazing mountain scenery enhances any outdoor activity, whether pond skating, cross-country skiing, fat biking, snowshoeing or simply (Nordic) walking. Heading out on familiar trails, time after time, could be boring. But by choosing to observe the changing of seasons and search out previously unnoticed details, it's possible to enjoy the same trails season after season, and year after year…
Autumn is our favourite season, and it comes early to this part of the world. Peak colour usually happens in September. But in October, later sunrises and earlier sunsets make it easy to get out at just the right time to enhance lingering fall colours with golden hour light. Since Canadian Thanksgiving falls on the second Monday in October, "Thanksgiving" was the obvious connecting theme for these photographs, all made over the Thanksgiving long weekend spent in Canmore.
Despite more than 20 years of hiking experience, we occasionally blow our trip planning. So while we thoroughly enjoyed the varied landscape and fantastic scenery just beyond Bow Hut, we didn't even know to hike up The Onion for an overhead view of Iceberg Lake. That's a good reason to hike this trail again - soon!
Despite its official arrival almost four weeks ago, signs of spring remain elusive. But for careful observers, there are compelling clues that spring is creeping over the Calgary landscape: fluffy catkins, pale green leaves poking through, patches of open water on Glenmore Reservoir, and prairie crocus blossoms - the most convincing sign of spring!