Cold but lovely

Wintry scene, sans snow

Melanie and I decided to make our holiday hike up to Lily Lake, just the two of us. It was supposed to be sunny and cold, but it was mostly cloudy when we started out. Although the forecast was for partly sunny skies, it wasn't that way at first. However, later on the sun did make an appearance. Everything is definitely looking wintry.

Me in front of the decision spot

By the time we climbed up most of the elevation to this spot, we had a decision to make: go to Lizard Lake and make our hike longer, or head to Lily Lake and then return the way we had come. Until we got here, the trail was mostly free of snow, and then it all changed.

Does it look slippery? Yep, it was indeed

This is the first place where we thought that our spikes might be useful to strap onto the bottom of our boots. Unfortunately, I couldn't find mine this morning, but Mel had spares. I thought maybe I could make it to the lake without them.

Lily Lake

We did finally make it to the lake, only to find it frozen solid, and a brisk wind had picked up by this time. We huddled under a tree, while Mel put on her spikes with frozen fingers. I decided to try to make it back myself without falling, which I did, but it was with a lot of careful stepping and caution. The distance where it was icy and snowy was brief. Mel was happy to have put on her spikes, and I'll find mine before we go out next week.

Brief spots of sun broke through the clouds

As we headed back the way we had come, we saw that the sun was definitely beginning to show through all those clouds. And by the time we had returned to the car, having covered seven miles and 1,500 elevation gain and loss, there was more sun in the sky than clouds. Before we hit the freeway, it was full-on sunshine.

Happy holidays from Mel!

We went to the Evolve Cafe for a wonderful late lunch. Although it's been quite awhile since we finished, I am still full and happily so. Mel had a peppermint schnapps hot chocolate with hers, and I enjoyed some cheesy biscuits. It all went very delightfully together with a polenta dish that we both ordered.

As the sun set today at 4:13pm, we were both ensconced in our respective homes, me with my partner, and she with Torquil, her cat. And both feeling pretty good about our choice for the day. I do hope that everyone had a great day, filled with lots of good cheer!

:-)