Dreaming of a White Christmas, Homer, Alaska blizzard

When I was a kid growing up in North Carolina, I had to dream pretty hard for a white Christmas.  We did get one when we lived in Asheville, in the mountains, and I will never forget it.  Living in Alaska, you would have to dream just as hard to not have a white Christmas, but after sixteen years, I still appreciate them.  This winter has been very, very cold, but we have had little snow.  On Christmas eve this year we got over two feet, which was beautiful, but forced everyone to do a little yard work.  I brought my snow-blower up to a friends house and helped out so they could join us for a Christmas party.

It was a stunningly beautiful day, for the short period of light. During the storm, a freezing rain event caused heavy sagging of the branches, but luckily we didn’t lose power.

The scene out of our window on Christmas morning of a stunning white Christmas.

The sun peaks over the mountains for a few hours and lights up the high spots in orange light. Homer, Alaska.

Birch and spruce covered in snow and ice.

A huge birch tree is covered in ice and snow, against a beautiful blue sky.

The back of my pickup truck was full of snow from the overnight storm. Just a little extra work and exercise.

I am in London Heathrow now, getting ready to board a flight to Johannesburg for a month of exploring Mozambique and Botswana. My next post should be quite different from this one! Wish me luck!