Monday, January 18, 2010

A Frosty Morning

We had dense fog overnight. The results were beautiful frosty decorations on everything in the backyard. The winds were calm and the sun never came out completely, so none of the frosty crystals were disturbed. Here are some of the sights I captured in the backyard this morning.

Garden Art
The frost was really heavy on some branches.

Frosty pine needles

Staghorn Sumac seed heads

The frosty Weeping Willow reminded me of the "Tree of Souls" from "Avatar."

Purple Coneflower seedhead

Scotch Pine

Highbush Cranberry holds its fruit all winter

A White Pine in the front yard

Silk Christmas flowers by the front door

The Pin Oaks are still holding most of their leaves



23 comments:

Bonnie said...

What gorgeous photos!

Lisa at Greenbow said...

These are gorgeous photos Ruthie. We have had the fog but it is too warm here for frost.

Mama Pea said...

Omigosh, Ruthie, you got some AWESOME photos! Don't know if I could pick a favorite one . . . they are really beautiful. What Mother Nature can't do!

RuthieJ said...

Thanks Bonnie (& welcome to my blog!)

Thanks Lisa. I think the weather was perfect for this today -- 18 degrees early this morning for the frost to form and no wind to blow it away.

Thanks Mama Pea. It gave me a good excuse to put on my tall boots and wander around in the backyard this morning!

Lynne at Hasty Brook said...

These are beautiful Ruthie. They would be lovely framed together.

Anonymous said...

Your pics are BEAUTIFUL. That frost lasted all day, no wind. At sunset tonite the sun came out for a few mins and it was all sparkly. It was one okay day, even if it was gray.

MOM

Dave Dorsey said...

Nice Ruthie!

Gaelyn said...

Wow Ruthie, these are all spectacular photos. The macros really show the world of the snow queen. Beautiful, even if it makes me shiver.

Kate said...

Those photos are gorgeous. Makes me wish for winter where I am.

Meggie said...

Simply exquisite, Ruthie! Frozen fog/frost is something we don't often get here in PA. Your shots are quite professional looking.

Taos Sunflower said...

My family in Illinois reported the same. Your photos are super.

Jayne said...

Oh, I LOVE those photos Ruthie, esp. the weather vane! So magical!

troutbirder said...

You did good! I can't remember when we've had so many beautiful hoar frost morning.
On golden eagles. They really need to be flying to get positive id's. We met at Wilson, # 44 & I90, and headed south toward Houston. I was driving, so following directions left, right, straight ahead etc. The map I posted (upside down) is correct. We did route #15 circling about thru valley both in Winona and Houston counties. The only town I remember being mention was "Money Creek". Hope this helps. :)

Jennifer said...

Wow, Ruthie! Gorgeous. It was like this in the upper elevations during my ride to work, but I didn't have my camera... Glad you got some pretty shots!

Ruth said...

We have had hoarfrost here too but only on the treetops. Your photos are absolutely the best winter shots I have seen in a long time.

RuthieJ said...

Thanks Lynne. Maybe I'll have to see about creating a collage poster through Snapfish.....

Thanks Mom. The frost at our place was even prettier on Tuesday, but skies weren't as bright, so I'm glad I took these pictures on Monday.

Thanks Dave!

Thanks Gaelyn. It's sure nice for us to have some pretty (and above zero!) days like this in the middle of January. Makes our winter a little more bearable.

Thank you Kate (and thanks for visiting my blog!) Our winters are usually too long....you'd be better off just coming over for a visit and then going home to your nicer climate!

Thanks Meggie. The only time we get frost like this is when it's really foggy and the current weather system has been hanging around for quite a while. Fortunately, the frost hasn't settled on the roads, so driving isn't hazardous and we can just enjoy the beautiful scenery.

Thanks Martie!

Thanks Jayne! I loved how the frost makes ordinary things so beautiful too.

Thanks Ray. And thanks for the directions--I know exactly where you were at! I was thinking your photos looked much like Houston county.

Thanks Jennifer. I was glad to get home early from work on this day to take advantage of all the beautiful scenes in my backyard.

Wow Ruth, thanks so much! I took all of these photos with my little bitty camera too (since it's easier to put in my pocket to keep it warm between shots)

Dawn Fine said...

Gorgeous Photos Ruthie..I love love the Scotch pine shot...
purdy darn cold there...

Stephen said...

Ruthie,
Your photographs have wonderfully captured the beauty of one of nature's winter splendors. I've have sat here in awe admiring them. They're beautiful!

RuthieJ said...

Thanks Dawn. Actually the temps are pretty nice right now -- in the 20's (above zero!!)

Thank you Stephen -- you're gonna make me get all conceited now!!

Cindy said...

Great pics Ruthie!! The hoar frost this year has been so beautiful! These rain events are terrible! It is January for crying out loud! This ice is more than I can handle. I walked into our small grocery store yesterday and saw three people with three different casts on. Here's hoping you stay upright and mobile!

Anonymous said...

These pictures are exquisite! Makes me miss those Minnesota winters. I'll get over it. :) (I still remember grey, damp, cold Indiana from last week!)

In regard to your backyard drama, my husband came in today and told me that the bird feathers in the driveway were the remainders of a murder he witnessed as he was coming in. The hawk snatched a bird. Odd, I saw a brazen one in Indianapolis while we were there. It almost hit the car in its swoop. Just read something today about them losing their fear of humans because of their quest for food.

Shades of Alfred Hitchcock. . . yikes!

Larry said...

Love the snow,frost and ice images. Great job with the photos!

KaHolly said...

These are incredible photos! They'd make a great collage on a wall. ~karen