Sweethearts and Snowshoes

One of the nice things about living near mountains are all the fun winter activities involving snow. Carrie keeps an eye on new adventures for us, and recently she discovered the sweetheart snowshoe hike. It's a romantic stroll through the snow and the woods and the mountains, just you and that special person and about 14 other people. With Valentine's Day in our minds, and love in our hearts, we set out for our fun adventure.

First, we met with the rest of the group, and then took the 30 minute drive up to our trail. We started to hike up into the mountains on a trail set aside for snowshoeing and cross-country skiing (no snowmobiles allowed!). It was uphill all the way. That meant that we, who had dressed rather warmly, were already rather warm about halfway up. I even had to unzip my jacket!

Now, of course, I cannot just get off the trail and not have a little fun. Armed with her camera for proof, Carrie caught me in this most unusual of snowshoe positions.

For all of you amateurs out there, DO NOT try that at home!

Just to show you how cool she is, my sweetheart snowflake also wandered a few steps off the trail to show off her modeling skills. What do you think? You'd buy whatever she was selling, right?

Really, we had a lot of fun. We have both gone snowshoeing before, but were reminded today of how much fun it really is, and how much beauty we are surrounded by out here. We noticed the pawprints of a number of different creatures (such as ermine, snowshoe hare, kangaroo rat, deer, and then from a moose or an elk, the guide wasn't sure), saw how the snow packs up, and got a pretty good workout.

This has become an annual tradition at the local nature center. We have gone on a sweetheart snowshoe hike before, and really enjoy it a lot. We got to interact with a few other couples from the local area, but really, we got to enjoy some beautiful landscapes that God made and so few people ever get to see. What a great joy that is!

Of course, we can't help but be a little silly every once in a while. You would never guess that from this picture.

Just a couple of cool people, out for a cool stroll through the cool mountains, enjoying God's cool creation. What better way to be sweehearts together?