RAMBLINGS OF WINTER

I will admit that I am not a huge fan of the cold weather.  If the snow was a little more consistent in the southern Black Hills, it would be a better source of recreation versus annoyance.  I love an 80 degree day, green grass and the trickle of a small stream.  However, the last few years I have made an effort to bundle up and head out in the cold and enjoy a fresh perspective on this amazing place where I live.  A fresh blanket of snow turns Sylvan Lake into an amazing canvas of black and whites.  A fresh set of tracks on the snow makes me feel like I am the first to explore an area.  The sun glistening off the frost makes my otherwise brown yard dance with excitement.  

As I am often reminded, I am fortunate enough to live in a place where people go to vacation. And not just in the summer.  This week as the cold rolled into the Black Hills, first time visitors from Nebraska, Wisconsin and Minnesota expressed to me their wonder of the beauty surrounding us.   

So, if you are like me, try not to get down by the cold weather and shorter days.  Look at it as opportunity to see the familiar as a new landscape waiting to be explored.   

By Pat Wiederhold

P.S.  All the gear you need to comfortably enjoy the outdoors during the winter months in the Black Hills, from socks to hats, long underwear to coats, can be found at Granite Sports in Hill City, and at Granite Sports Online.