First Snowfall

After unseasonably warm weather in Southern Ontario for the month of November (daily highs of 20°C) it is strange to think that in a matter of days, we went from Summer like conditions to Winter in the blink of an eye. The temperature was a crisp -5°C. We had about 5cm of fresh snow blanketing everything in the morning, for the first snowfall of the season! Much to my dismay, this fresh snowfall wasn’t going to last. Nonetheless, the first snowfall of the season always brings a new level of excitement in the air (even for those who don’t like snow much) Knowing this, I set out in the early morning in hopes of an encounter just like you see here. I was fortunate to cross paths with a big, beautiful buck coined ‘Bull’. This was the first of our encounters, while it was brief it was also magical in this setting. It would be my only encounter this morning. I clocked over 10km in search of more forest friends on this day. What sticks with me the most is watching the forest transform before my very eyes. In the 7 hours spent in the bush it went from a pristine winter wonderland to absolutely zero evidence it ever snowed at all. Anyone who slept in past lunch hour on this day, would have never known a flake of snow was on the ground. As previously mentioned, Bull and I got well acquainted with one another starting back in the fall of 2020. I was the fortunate recipient of one of his ‘gifts’ in the Spring of 2021. On Earth Day, I went to my local forest where Bull lives to do my annual Earth Day clean up. As I was collecting trash, I spotted something in the distance, forest treasure! My eyes grew wider as I approached a lone Antler on the ground, as I was reaching down to pick it up, I realised whose antler it was. I had been blessed with finding the right 7-point antler!