‘Tis the Season of Wintery Scenes Once Again

Diamond Path –
West Towpath @ Vischer Ferry Nature & Historic Preserve following December 2008 ice storm

Welcome to winter!

The winter solstice will occur on December 21. It’s the northern hemisphere’s shortest day and longest night of the year. It’s also when noontime shadows are the longest of the year.

The season offers opportunities aplenty to view our winter landscape from a number of perspectives –

Up close:

Fruit of Wintergreen (Gaultheria procumbens)

From afar:

Flocked Forest

Time of day (and with shorter days, the opportunities pass quickly!):

Winter Twilight

Contrasts within winter’s whiteness:

In the abstract:

Frozen Flood: The Mohawk River in Still Life

As a medium for imprints:

Tracks of Fisher (Pekania pennanti)

The arrival of this new season will mark the return of the shortest days of the entire year.  How do you want to enjoy the outdoors with those few hours of daylight?

First ski tracks of season

Here is a list of winter outdoor and online activities to consider:

• Winter Solstice Hike (12/21/2022 @ 10am)
• Ursids Meteor Showers (nightly through 12/24/2022 with peak overnight on 12/21/2022)
• Quadrantids Meteor Showers (nightly between 12/26/2022 through 1/16/2023 with peak overnight on 1/3-4/2023)
• First Day Hike – Chasing Frozen Waterfalls (1/1/2023 @ 10am)
• First Day Hike (1/1/2023 @ 10am and @ 1pm)
• First Day Hike (1/1/2023 @ 10:30am and @ 1pm)
• First Day Hike (1/1/2023 @ 1pm)
• Wolf Moon Full Moon Hike (1/6/2023 @ 6:30pm)
• Bog Meadow Brook Weekly Walk (1/12/2023 @ 10am)
• Washington County Grasslands Wildlife Management Area Birdwatching (1/14/2023 @ 2pm)
• Gloweegee Preserve Walk (1/15/2023 @ 10am)
• Bog Meadow Brook Weekly Walk (1/19/2023 @ 10am)
• From Amazon Warriors to Weed Seed Eaters – Ant Diversity in Columbia County and Their Role in the Farmscape (1/19/2023 @ 7pm)
• Sunrise Walk (1/22/2023 @ 8am)
• Bog Meadow Brook Weekly Walk (1/26/2023 @ 10am)
• Gloweegee Preserve Walk (1/29/2023 @ 10am)
• Snowshoe Hike (1/29/2023 @ 11:00am)
• Bog Meadow Brook Weekly Walk (2/2/2023 @ 10am)
• Snow Moon Full Moon Hike (2/5/2023 @ 7pm)
• Bog Meadow Brook Weekly Walk (2/9/2023 @ 10am)
• Endless Forms Most Beautiful: The Incredible Diversity of Wasps (2/9/2023 @ 7pm)
• Washington County Grasslands Wildlife Management Area Birdwatching (2/11/2023 @ 2pm)
• Gloweegee Preserve Walk (2/12/2023 @ 10am)
• Bog Meadow Brook Weekly Walk (2/16/2023 @ 10am)
• Who’s That Bird? Winter Bird Identification (2/16/2023 @ 7pm – online event)
• Owl Prowl (2/17/2023 @ 6pm)
• Sunrise Walk (2/19/2023 @ 6:30am)
• Owl Prowl (2/23/2023 @ 6pm)
• Owl Prowl (2/24/2023 @ 6pm)
• Forensic Botanizing – Winter Plant ID (2/25/2023 @ 1pm)
• Worm Moon Full Moon Hike (3/7/2023 @ 7:30pm)
• Vosburgh Swamp Wildlife Management Area Birdwatching (3/11/2023 @ 8am)
• Winter Tree Identification (3/11/2023 @ 1pm)

Happy trails!

Full Cold Moon

Photo Credit: https://abcnews.go.com/US/12s-wild-decades-final-full-moon/story?id=67600540

The full Cold Moon rises on Wednesday, December 7, with peak illumination at 11:09pm EST.  Start looking for this full moon just before sunset as it begins to peek above the horizon.  December’s full moon has a high trajectory in the sky, which means that it will be above the horizon for longer than most full moons.

For millennia, people across Europe, as well as Native American tribes, named the months after features they associated with the seasons of the northern hemisphere.  Not surprisingly, despite the differences in these cultures, the names that each assigned to those dozen moons are very similar.

December’s full moon is most commonly known as the Cold Moon—a Mohawk name that reflects when cold weather truly begins to grip us at this time each year.  Mohicans refer to this full moon as the Long Night Moon, as it rises during the “longest” nights of the year that occur near the winter solstice.  Fittingly, December’s full moon shines above the horizon for a longer period of time than most full moons experienced throughout the year.  During this long bright night of moonglow, perhaps ponder the spiritual meanings that have also been associated with December’s full moon:  reincarnation, hope, eternity, and clarity.

Watch a video about the Full Cold Moon.

Happy viewing!