I was doing one of those things where I was focusing on the horses in the foreground, then focusing on the mountains in the background … when a little bit of a scuffle broke out, interrupting naps all around.
Post-scuffle, I had the mountains in focus but not the horse. … I still kinda think it works. What do ya’ll think?
Happy winter solstice!
These December days have been glorious. No doubt about it.
Some snow would be great. 🙂
Maybe Chipeta thought she could take the “low road” and escape notice. …
No such luck, lady. 🙂
Look how thick and fuzzy her coat is!
By the amount of snow on the cliff side, you can tell it’s north-facing. There’s not a lot of snow out there otherwise.
Cassidy Rain doesn’t mind. I think you can see from here: She’s fuzzy and winter-ready!
Another pic – this time of dear Aspen – as the fog was clearing from the bowl of Spring Creek Basin a couple of mornings ago. He’s showing his age and moving slower these days, but he’s doing all right, hanging out – sometimes – with another bachelor and/or sometimes trailing a band.
The National Weather Service has this to say about the formation of fog: “Warm air, moist air blows in from the south and if there is snow or cool moisture on the ground it will come in contact with the warm, moist winds. This contact between the air and ground will cause the air blowing in to become cool. Then dew point rises and creates high humidity and forms fog.”
That describes our conditions the last couple of mornings to a T.
It might go without saying that in the high-desert country of Southwest Colorado, we rarely get fog. 🙂
One of the coolest – and picturesque – things about fog is when it’s starting to clear in favor of that strongest of atmospheric conditions (especially in Southwest Colorado): sunshine. 🙂
Above, I happened to catch sight of a few bachelor stallions trotting across the landscape, with a hazy spotlight of sunshine casting light particularly on the rimrocks above Spring Creek canyon. Oh, so very pretty.
Whewwwwwwwww, Nellie! I would NOT want to be on the receiving end of THAT look of menace!
But a few paces later, all was well.
Sometimes, all it takes is a look and a bit of a stompy stride. 🙂
While upper/higher elevations got some snow yesterday and the previous night, Spring Creek Basin and the lower parts of Disappointment Valley got rain, which resulted in sticky/muddy ground. The moisture, though not a great amount, is always welcome. But season-wise, we’d kinda like some snow!
Apparently, Colorado may have a white Christmas! Hopefully that includes our little corner of the state.
From my vantage point with another band, I saw these lovelies lined out walking toward a pond in the distance.
We’re really all just small critters in this great, wide and wild world of ours.
See them?
See the other thems? 🙂
With winter coats like those, mustangs can nap comfortably even with a nippy wind swirling.
And with a view like that, who wouldn’t want to peacefully linger?
The clouds were playing tag with the lowering sun, and while I was waiting for a bit more light on the scene, the subtle light was just divine.
Despite the sharp wind, Sundance was perfectly at ease. I was perfectly glad of all my layers!
Spring Creek Basin Mustangs 