Category Archives: Winter

Ice Breaking Up on the Big Lake

March 27, 2022 Troy

A warm late winter afternoon on Minnesota’s North Shore highlighted what time of year it was. Spring would soon be here bringing warmer days. Ice along the shoreline of Lake Superior was beginning to break apart as evidenced by little islands made entirely of ice floating out to sea. Plates of ice littered the shoreline from previous days when it broke apart. Probably from a windy day creating waves on the big lake. These plates were stacked up in all different directions as the waves washed them up on top of each other. Overnight a light snow fell covering much of the rock and ice making up the shore line just north of Duluth. It’s really a beautiful winter scene!

The sun was high overhead on this bright afternoon showcasing each shard of ice. Each step must be carefully placed lest you break through this often fragile puzzle or slip and find yourself face to face with an unforgiving piece of granite coated in frozen water. Worse yet, you could land in this very cold body of water. It was a warm winter afternoon but that only means the temperature was just above freezing and a dip in the water could bring on hyperthermia. This is a good opportunity to use ice cleats to help secure each step allowing the user to spend more time enjoying each barge of ice as it floats by, slowly disintegrating.

Focusing more on the shoreline brings a myriad of shapes and sizes of ice plates thrown on top of one another. How did they get like this? Many of the boulders and beach were covered in ice. That is easier for me to figure out as the spray from each wave crashing into the shoreline ends in an eruption of water coating these rocks in water which quickly freezes.

The suns strength was not enough on this day to break through most of that ice protected by a thin layer of snow. Strolling along the shore brought a relaxing beautiful late winter view. But for only a short time as there was still the long drive back to the big city before heading to work the next day. A visit to the shores of Lake Superior is always a great way to spend a day no matter what season it is.

Ice and Snow, Troy's Blog, Winter

Ice, Snow, and Frost at Gooseberry

March 6, 2022 Troy

Winter continues to have a tight grip in Northern Minnesota. I love exploring the North Shore of Lake Superior in the winter even if it means trudging through deep snow to hike anywhere. The landscape seems so peaceful resting from a summer of growing. As I take in each detail of the rocky, icy rivers and waterfalls, little ice sculptures begin to appear. They’re so unique and beautiful! It’s calming to watch water rushing underneath these while trying to imagine how they’ve formed over the past couple of months.

To see the caverns tucked under the deep snow warns of possible danger should someone decide to venture over this ice cold water. Yet a peak at the snow above and ice below connected by each pillar of ice begs for a closer view. Deciding to walk out on top of this rushing water, following trails of others, I kneel down next to a rare open spot on the river to see frost clinging to these icicles. It’s mesmerized me causing me to forget it’s a cold, cloudy winter day next to the big lake. Reaching for the camera and focusing on the ice formations allows me to see even more of the detail coming together capturing them to admire over and over again. If only I had a macro lens with me and could get even closer to these, I would be lost here for hours.

At first sight, the rushing water grabs your attention. But after watching for awhile you begin to see details surround this small, open portion of Gooseberry River carrying it’s ice cold payload to Lake Superior a short distance away. The ice formations floating above the moving water connected to the snow above with small pillars of ice hiding the numerous caves just behind. Soon these will all be gone with spring quickly approaching. In the next couple of weeks, these ice sheets will begin to melt carrying these sculptures down the river. For today there is plenty of snow taking over the landscape creating a beautiful winter wonderland.

Moving up and down the waterfalls, there are many areas I would like to explore but the afternoon is moving quickly and daylight will run out. Time for a little hike along the river banks enjoying the views. I had hoped to get out and see the lake shore at least for a few minutes but no such opportunity today. There was still the long drive home to come. I could see Lake Superior through the canyon carved by this river from a distance. Ice covered near the shore with that familiar open blue water as you looked out over the lake. That would be as close to it as I would get for this trip.

Walking along the river, I was amazed at how much ice and snow was on top of the water. You could only tell by small areas of open water rushing downstream. The snow had to be four or five feet above these open areas. I couldn’t recall a time when I’ve seen the snow that deep. Once this all begins to melt I’m sure these waterfalls will be furious with all the water running over top. I’ll have to return in early spring to see it first hand.

Photos, Seasons, Troy's Blog, Winter

A Winter Solstice Treat

December 24, 2021 Troy

On the winter solstice I went out hoping to catch a glimpse of the comet Leonard which is possibly visible just after sunset. Unfortunately I didn’t see any signs of it and became frustrated when clouds began to cover the horizon. It was a cold night with temperatures near 10 degrees F and I was about to head back home when something unusual started to appear. My first thought was the Northern Lights. Quickly I knew this was not the aurora especially since I was shooting towards the south. A brief detour, the bright white dot just above the trees is Venus. Saturn and Jupiter are also in the picture higher up towards the left diagonally. Uncertain of exactly what was happening I continued to photograph the sky. Unfortunately my equipment was somewhat incomplete for such photography. I had a tripod but ended up having the wrong connector on the camera so I needed to figure out a way to shoot long exposure pictures. Using hard surfaces and a timer on the camera, I continued to shoot the sky all around me which you can see in the panorama below as these lights continued to hang in the night sky slowly changing. Sometimes shining brightly and then fading. The size would climb higher in the sky and then become shorter again.

I enjoyed these for about 45 minutes before they disappeared. Finally getting back into the car I could barely feel my fingers and toes. Quickly turning on the heat, I started driving and remembered seeing photos of these sky lights before but couldn’t remember what they were called or what causes them. Once home, the camera batteries went on the charger and I began to search lights in the night sky. Finally the answer was found – they are simply called light pillars. These are caused by ice crystals reflecting area lights and probably moonlight from the nearly full moon almost at the horizon. What an amazing surprise to celebrate this shortest day of the year! From what I can find, since all of the conditions which have to be just right for these to appear, they are more rare than the Northern Lights. Finally, a positive creation from all of our light pollution I guess.

Photos, Troy's Blog, Winter

Digging Into a Snow Drift

December 19, 2021 Troy

Recently we had several inches of snow in the forecast and I wanted to get some great photos of it. The next morning called for cold and clear skies so I headed out to a nearby park to capture images of the fresh snow before the days sunlight began to melt it away. The sky was less interesting than I’d hoped with clouds covering the horizon and clear skies above meaning no color in the clouds or sun at the horizon. Eventually the sun rose above the clouds to shower everything in warm, bright light. What I did find were patterns in snow from winds blowing strongly during the snowfall. It created some dramatic drifts carefully carved with each flake driven into the ground by forceful winds. Why does the snow remain in one streak while the rest of it was blown away?

What fascinates me is taking a closer look at these drifts and seeing the patterns and layers. Imagining what was happening while they’re being created. In this case, how did the snow go together in each layer? What I also find amazing is the same forces that create these drifts are also factors in how stone and sand are naturally carved – especially sandstone in the desert Southwest of the United States. Only snow drifts happen much faster so we can witness it in a matter of hours.

As the snow was falling, I took some time to capture a few of these and photograph them. It was a challenge for several reasons – the temperatures were near freezing so they melted quickly once under the camera, they were small as far as snowflakes go, and the crystals formed in all directions which is unusual.

In the picture above the blurry bright area on the lower right is a toothpick. This gives you something to compare how small these individual snow flakes were. Knowing how small these were makes me question what impact that had on the drifts created? If these ice crystals had been bigger, as they often are, the drifts would have formed differently with different patterns and shapes. In the top pictures there’s a very narrow drift. I’m certain it would not have been possible with larger snowflakes as they can get picked up easier by the wind, whereas these smaller ones are probably more aerodynamic allowing them to stay in place. What protected that little strip of snow? I didn’t look at that at the time of photographing the imagine so I’m not sure.

During the snowfall, these were the types of flakes falling. With each crystal appearing to be in a random direction, there were lots of interesting shapes to look at as they began to melt. One of the pieces that amazed me was how thick each of these crystals were compared to their overall size which is easier to see with larger images. One of the questions I had was did each of these snowflakes form this way or were there many small crystals that collided together to form these? It’s intriguing to think about and try to solve this question in an effort to learn what conditions are needed for such a ice crystal to be made.

Ice and Snow, Photos, Troy's Blog, Winter

A Beautiful Frosty Morning

March 24, 2019 Troy

An early March morning as a hint of light entered the sky, long before the sun would rise, I noticed something different as I looked out the frosty window. While the furnace fought another below zero morning I peered outside and saw a white coating covering everything outside of the house walls. Immediately I could tell it was the beginning of what should be a spectacular sunrise as the fresh coat of snow glistened from the suns rays. Do I head out with the camera to endure another cold morning or stay in the warmth and type away on the computer? Initially I was not interested in venturing out in the cold for yet another time as it was Saturday and I didn’t have anywhere to go but I did have a number of projects on the computer to work on. My mistake was glancing back outside one more time on the way to the desk and my plans for the day were changed. It was too beautiful even in the dimly lit sky for me to stay home. Besides, the camera was already in the chilled car ready to go.

It only took a few minutes to travel to a nearby park once I had all of my winter gear wrapped around me making each step feel like a flight of stairs. Along the drive I got lost in the incredible views surrounding me as an amazing frost coated most of the scene with ice crystals I didn’t recall seeing before in my life. Arriving at the park I saw the parking lot ahead of me was not plowed, but a few vehicles had entered creating a path so I followed it into a spot just before the sun breached the horizon. Quickly getting out of the car to grab the camera I headed to a place to capture the mornings first rays barely even noticing the cold surrounding me. Every step brought another unique frost crystal attempting to distract me from my destination for the sunrise. Once the sun had moved above the horizon I was able to turn my focus back to these beautiful ice formations. A few pictures told me my success would be very limited without a tripod to steady each shot on. Unfortunately, in my haste earlier in the morning I left the car without it so now I either needed to trudge back through the deep snow or continue snapping away holding the camera as steady as I could with my hands. Knowing I would not be happy with my photos unless they were clear and sharp I decided the tiring trip back to the car would be necessary and besides, in this cold the frost crystals were going nowhere.

Returning as quickly as possible, the tripod was set up with the camera on top of it ready to capture this amazing frost covering trees and shrubs everywhere. Seeing these crystals through the lens magnifying them even more to bring out their incredible structures. I began to lose track of time focusing on each branch making up the hoar frost showing its multiple layers combining together in each crystal. All of that time photographing snowflakes has now become very useful in trying to capture the details of this frost. These ice crystals where much larger and more complex than most snow flakes though and photographing them close up made it difficult to keep each portion in focus. Thankfully it remained bitterly cold so the frost persisted throughout the morning giving a lot of time to try different compositions to capture the beauty up close.

As I examined each ice crystal I could see the various layers as they developed through the night. How long did it take to create these I wondered. Are they still forming even during the morning light when they typically begin to disappear? Why are there different shapes along each branch? Some portions where rounded while others where more squared off. From a distance they appear white but when viewed up close they are clear while they no longer reflect the light that makes them look white. So interesting to study. As the morning continued on, the wind began to blow making the frost crystals more difficult to capture in focus but I continued on since this type of winter display doesn’t happen very often. I think the Northern Lights appear more frequently. Eventually I did have to stop photographing the frost to return home and work on projects which were waiting for me. Getting up before dawn and enduring the cold were all worth while just to experience such a beautiful phenomenon. Thank goodness for heat packs!

Ice and Snow, Troy's Blog, Winter

Playing in the Cold

March 10, 2019 Troy

It’s –27 degrees Fahrenheit, schools have been closed, the post office called off mail delivery, and many people have decided to stay home from work so what is there left to do but stay cozy inside and watch a movie or read a book? For me it just means going out and doing things that you can really only do in temperatures this cold. Since everyone was off from school we decided to warm up some water and see how long it takes to freeze in this type of cold. Throwing it up in the air, it takes maybe a second before that water almost explodes into ice crystals and blow away. There are many videos available to watch as people do this but watching with your own eyes really shows how fascinating and amazing it is that water transforms at this fast of a speed. The water has to be warm enough for this to work or it will just fall back to the ground and create ice balls instead.

With the sun being out and it being so cold I decided to experiment with rose flowers and see what it’s like to sort of flash freeze them with some water droplets and see what happens. I placed them in the snow to given this extremely white background to really set off the color which seems to be preserved in the cold. I let them freeze over a period of 20 minutes or so before taking pictures. During the winter I try to keep a camera in the cold so it’s ready all of the time. When it gets this cold I remove the batteries so they will keep a charge and put them in when ready to shoot. You can use a phone camera for a few minutes but it will likely shut down in cold like this and take a while to warm back up to function again.

I’ve seen some incredible patterns in bubbles frozen and decided to give that a try. It was not hugely successful but I did get a shot or two of patterns developing as the bubble froze. I was surprised how quickly these patterns developed and then disappeared. There was a minute or so to get a photograph before the bubble began to completely freeze and disintegrate. Something I may try at warmer temperatures and see if it last longer.

Another interesting thing to look at is frost forming on windows and doors. The patterns of these ice crystals are so diverse and abstract. I tend to get lost in a picture like this just following the different branches and seeing each design and how they all work together. Does one change how another develops and it takes the moisture away? Is there a difference created by very small temperature differences? Something I should try in the future is to breathe lightly on a window and see if there are differences in how hard I breath. Does it create different patterns or just fog up the entire window pane and freeze? Something for another cold winter day.

Gaining Life Experience