Canyon Falls Late Winter Hike: Part Two

This is part two of a late winter hike into Canyon Falls.

If you missed Part One, just drop below this post and you will find it.

The river had begun melting.

Which meant only ONE thing...

perhaps the falls were now visible under all the snow and ice at the end of the gorge.

Perhaps  NOT....

So, we hiked on and heard water rushing.

Lo and behold, through a tiny fissure in the snow we saw running water:

But just a crack of it...

And the icy cliffs beside the falls still had clinging snow and ice:

The falls were running, but only in a small cracked area of the snow and ice:

I had to climb over a safety fence and lean

wayyyyyyy

over to get this shot.

(No one should try this at home).

The weirdest thing happened.

We were out there about 14 hours after the big earthquake in Japan.

And RIGHT as I was leaning way over the cliff (with Paul holding on to my coat hood should I slip)

we heard and felt this tremendous rumbling in the rocks...

it sounded like thunder but the sky was clear blue...

He grabbed me to the fence and said "get back!!"

so I scurried (as much as a fifty-something old  year old can scurry)

back over the fence immediately.

The only thing we could think of was that it was, indeed the rumbling through the rocks from far away Japan's incidence.

It was very weird.

And scary.

So, I stayed in safe distance from the edge from thereon.

This is the last shot I got whilst on the edge:

Loved those gynormous icicles on the opposite cliff:

And the ones hanging over the water:

I love snow and ice in black and white:

But, remind me again, (the next time there is an earthquake somewhere in the world)...

to wait at least 24 hours before attempting to go to a rocky canyon

to take waterfall pictures over the edge of a cliff, will 'ya?

(I may be too old to remember by then)......

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Winter on Lake Superior: Part Two

Here is the second set of

winter pictures

of Lake Superior

that I promised you!!

I know many of you already have green grass poking up

and some of you

even have spring flowers blooming.

Believe me,

in the U.P. (Upper Peninsula) of Michigan,

we won't see true spring

until April

and even sometimes, we still get snow in April or May.

So, we learn to love the beauty of our winters

and embrace spring with great celebration here when it finally DOES arrive!

In the meantime, enjoy our winter beauty pictures!

Icy walkway to the gorgeous lighthouse:

Ice and snow on shore!:

Winter shoreline drama!:

Island ice:

Snow coming down

on the icy walkway out to the lighthouse:

Icy shores looking out at the icy lighthouse!:

Icy islands that look like floating iceburgs!:

Another view of the winter lighthouse:

A lonely winter park bench!:

Winter's grip on the shore trees:

Long shot of the same place:

Winter lake scene:

Snowing on the

icy

walkway to the lighthouse:

It is so hard to believe that in just a few weeks,

all of this will melt away...

life will again come to the trees and the grass,

and it will look totally different.

Nature is so amazing!