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Big snow, then no snow, rinse repeat

 It has been the oddest winter.  For example, from February 13 through the 20th, we received 17.5 inches of snow, and now there is nothing in the forecast except rain for the next few weeks.  It has been like this since early January - big dumps of snow then nothing.  I think we just started our 5th mud season.   Mike and I went to Ironton yesterday to cross-country ski - Mike - and snowshoe - me and Dempsey.  It was in the 20s, clear blue sky, and great snow conditions because of the cold.  The views never get old. One of the Red Mountains in the background If you have the opportunity, there is a fabulous article in this week's Ouray Plain dealer about the rescue/recovery effort last summer on Red Mountain Pass, where two people were killed and a girl was brought up and airlifted to Denver.  She lived.  The article is titled, "Helping the helpers:  The anatomy of a complex rescue."  Highly recommend. I snowshoed up our trail l...
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Just a few things

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 I think most of you know about the tragedy Thursday night when Marchelle and Aaron's two-year-old pup Red drowned in the upper pond.  There are no words. We are under a winter storm warning through Thursday early morning.  Telluride is looking at a foot of new snow, and we're somewhere in the mix.  Totals keep changing.  That said, with our latest three day total of nine inches, we now have 61 inches for the season.  I went up snowshoeing Saturday and today, and it's the usual gorgeousness. from our living room after the storm passed heavy, moisture-laden snow
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Next week is a bust!

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 The original forecast looked good, seven to 12 at Telluride, which is always good for us on MFL.  However, the La Nina is still strong, and the storm is going to be significantly north of us. Mike and I snowshoed at Ironton this morning.  The snow for cross-country skiing is getting pretty bad.  I've been hiking on the Brooklyn Trail but never able to finish the loop, because there wasn't a snow trail to follow.  Today there was, and we were able to make the complete loop.  It is so gorgeous up there, and no one was about.  Dempsey, at age 13 and four months, loves going snowshoeing with me, and to have Mike with us today was icing on his cake. I'm planning to go up Veenstras' trail on Sunday.  I'll go in boots, and I'm hoping to hike some of the Sutton Mine Trail while I'm up there.   The top of Brooklyn Trail at Ironton
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Dry times

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 It appears it's going to be one of those winters where we get a big dump of snow and then wait three weeks for another one, with no snow in between.  It's so odd.  I'm taking advantage of what snow we still have, and I've been up the trail and at Ironton several times.  The snow is starting to wear thin in spots, so much so that I actually just walked up the trail this morning. Mike checked the pond drainage yesterday, and there is none coming from under the spillway.  That is good news in that Bumper, who suggested the possibility of injecting something into the spot we think the leak is coming from, will have pretty good access once the pond starts to thaw. In the meantime, some trail photos - just too beautiful for words! heading home our little town I usually come up the trail on the left and eventually go down the trail on the right
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Snow and cold!

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 We have nine new inches of snow, which fell Friday night through Saturday afternoon.  It's cold, 11 degrees as I write this, but we've escaped the worst part of the polar vortex.  I can't wait to go up the trail tomorrow!
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The ice climbers are back!

 As I was driving to town this morning and saw all of the climbers, I realized how much I've missed seeing them.  They are a chill group of people, not like our standard tourists.  The Ice Festival this weekend is on partially, and the venders have set up.  We are also under a winter weather advisory for snow starting 5 a.m. today and going until 5 a.m. Sunday.  It could be a couple of inches, it could be a foot, it could be today, it could be tomorrow.  It's going to be cold, but we are on the far western edge of the polar vortex set to hit the rest of the U.S.    I walked up the trail yesterday with Dempsey.  I could have snowshoed most of it, but it was packed down enough for boots.  There were lots of vizsla dog tracks and deer tracks, but I haven't seen anymore mountain lion tracks.  It must have wandered off.   We are currently at 43 inches for the season.
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Absolutely nothing is happening

No more snow, no regular Ice Fest, no snow in sight.  Grrr. 
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