Why did I start a nature activity blog in March when, quite honestly, I’m a bit of a weather wimp? I don’t like being cold or walking through deep snow or over ice. For years I’ve toyed with the idea of taking up cross-country skiing or snowshoeing so I could get a better appreciation of winter, but I’ve never mustered the motivation. I’m happy to appreciate nature in winter by gazing through my window.
Don’t get me wrong, if there is less than six inches of snow on the ground and there isn’t a brisk wind, I love walking in the winter. Part of my point is that you don’t have to be into numerous outdoor recreational activities in order to appreciate nature.
Today, I took an early morning walk in the park where I walk all but the winter months. The wind was brisker than I’d like it to be but I needed to get outside without a group of students in tow. Most of the snow has melted except for the plowed piles alongside the roads within the park. Some of these piles are so encrusted that they look a bit like sand castings.
I spotted a couple of chipmunks staring over the top of one pile of sand and snow. When I turned to look at them they vanished, the first chipmunks that I’ve seen since last autumn. Gray squirrels ran here and there, startled by my presence. I saw no white-tailed deer although with the snow gone a winter’s worth of scat was revealed in pebbly piles.
I looked up at one point and saw a hawk flying against the sun. I wondered if it was the red-tail I’ve often seen during warmer weather. The hawk landed in a pine then soared in a half circle, sinking over the other side of a hill, likely in search of one of those chipmunks pushing its way up out of its winter den.
Appreciating nature doesn’t have to take a lot of time, nor does it require any recreational equipment aside from some comfortable sneakers. It only requires some time, a place, and a bit of attention.
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