New Snow & Artist Conch babies

Yesterday when we went hiking it was starting to snow lightly and as the day progressed the snow got heavier. We had quite a few snowmobilers & friends come visit some we haven't seen since Peace was 8 weeks old and Bear & Lillie weren't even here yet. Our friends Dan, Jen, Jake, Jared, Allan, Chris, and some friends of their's came out riding and have helped me out in different situations over the years, it was good to see them.
The top photo was taken during the snowfall yesterday, the middle photo is this morning after the snow stuck everywhere.

The bottom photo is actually a fungi commonly called an artist conch, as you can see it grows in and on dead trees and what you are seeing is the fruit of said fungi, which after growing and covering the outside of dead trees people remove them, dry them out and then use them for a canvas for paintings and other art work, some we have found are over 15" across. The photo is of the bottom side of the fruit which is just starting to form but will be solid off white and dries to the texture of an artist canvas. I have found them all over out here in many different sizes and shapes some only possible to see when there is 10-12' of snow because they are so high in the trees/snags.
I'm not an artist, I can't even draw stick figures without a ruler or template but I do have a good eye I believe and see lots of possibilities with them from their beginnings like the photo to those that are multi-faced or 1' across, so until I learn to draw, I might just have to collect them for friends that are artist like Amanda & Rusty Gibbs and see what we ca come up with together.


I am grateful for the new snow and hope to see another 2' or more of snow so that it won't be so dry this summer. Everyone that has been here during the winter & come out here this winter are shocked to see so much of the buildings out here at this time of year, we are usually buried in snow and basically live in an ice cave for 3-4 months with only a way out and a couple of places to look out front and back. I normally have to climb up and then down to get to my porch 4-5' and usually getting i the powerhouse means climbing down 10-12' just to get inside it, this year I made steps in Jan and haven't had to dig another thing since which has been nice for sure but it's not good for keeping the fire danger down. Get out and enjoy the beautiful POW, get some fresh air, and enjoy the natural beauty all around.

We found our Paradise, hope you find yours too.