Just a few weeks ago the skies were blue, the clover green and the birds were still moving in the afternoon sun.
But then the daylight dwindles, the thermometer plummets, the hard frosts finish off the clover and the birds begin sticking closer to cover.
Soon after the first snows blanket the ground, allowing to you to see what the dog could always smell.
You focus in on the most likely places but the birds have all but vanished. Every infrequent flush seemingly the last that you’ll see. Still you push on through the thick brush, searching for birds.
The very few that you do down are hard won, hunkered down as they were in the tangled undergrowth and dense spruce thickets. Each one a just reward for the distance on your feet and the numbness in your fingers.
Then one morning you wake up to two feet of snow, another grouse season ending and the realization that “rent-a-movie” weather has begun in earnest.
the borealist 
Gorgeous. And true, if a bit melancholy.
The “post-season blues” usually last until the new year. For me anyways.
Most excellent!
Thank you.
Well said; AND great images!
Much appreciated.
I always wonder what the dogs think.. poor bastards.
I have a feeling they’re not impressed with the situation.
Rent a movie? Thank God for hockey on TV! Other than that, it’s amazing how the birds just up and vanish. Stay warm.
Yeah, but I’m an Oilers fan . . . so that doesn’t exactly help the situation.
That’s the kind of writing that reminds me that “I could do a blog” is as ridiculous as “I could hit a Ryan fastball”. Well done and spot on.
Thank you for the kind words.
I stumbled across your site and just wanted to say thanks for sharing these photo essays. I was born in Peace River, dad was a pilot for Peace Air way back in the day. He grew up on a farm near La Glace. I have lived in Australia for the last 15yrs and haven’t been to northern Alberta since I was a child. Most of my memories of the Peace region have faded with time but your photos have jogged my sun drenched mind. I haven’t seen snow in over a decade – I sure miss home. Thank You.
Well done Sir. For better or worse this post is still relevant here in Minnesota. Never know when you’re going to wake up with snow on the ground…. Still searching for our first Spring drummer.