First Day Hikes are part of a nationwide initiative led by America’s State Parks to encourage people to get outdoors. On New Year’s Day, hundreds of free, guided hikes are organized at state parks in all 50 states. Minnesota offered First Day Hikes at 11 parks, including Fort Snelling State Park – where we began our Hiking Club park quest last year. 🥾
So what better way to signal continuation of our park quest in 2023 then with a First Day hike at Fort Snelling. Getting the new hiking year off on the right foot, so to speak.🤨 We didn’t go all First Day in that we passed on the guided hike to do our own across Pike Island to the confluence of the Minnesota and Mississippi Rivers.
The winter hiking trail was well marked, well trodden, and well packed, with no need for microspikes or snowshoes. Some skiers were out and a few determined (We brought them along, so we’re going to use them!) folks on snowshoes.
Winter hikes aren’t known for color – they’re mostly about black and white, shades of gray, trunks and branches, and last year’s dead oak leaves. Maybe a little monotonous? And it’s still several months until Spring.
So, no surprise then that the pastel colors in the ice along the bank of the Mississippi drew me toward them. Focus on some tiny irregularity in the ice, do just a touch of exposure management (no Photoshop here!), and – voilé – abstracts from the ice.
Photographing ice got engrossing to the point where The LovedOne was forced to note that it was cold out here 🥶 and standing around watching me fool with the camera was itself somewhat monotonous. So, time to head back…
The winter hiking trail on Pike Island is 3.8 miles (6.1 km) and was good exercise on this cold day. There were maybe a dozen cars in the parking lot when we arrived. When we returned about two hours later, the two lots nearest the visitor center were almost full, with more cars coming in as we were leaving. Seems a lot of folks were getting out on this First Day. 😃
We hiked in the morning under gray, fog-laden skies. We were, of course, hoping for sunny skies but no luck with that. But then we’d had beautifully sunny skies during our hike last Friday, so no complaints. Still, the irony was palatable when the clouds dissipated and sunlight streamed forth JUST as we were leaving the trailhead for home. Sigh. 🙄
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BOOTS on the TRAIL 
Thanks! And thanks for relating these photos to well known artists. But Nature is the artist here, I’m just taking notes.
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The still life with seed pods looks like an Ernst Haeckel lithograph. and the ice colours like the sky or sea of a Turner waterscape. Not much monotony in your pictures!
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Thanks! We thought, at first, that the snowball Christmas tree was some kind of natural formation. A very creative use of snowballs! Ah, yes, more winter weather coming our way… 🥺🥶❄
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I hadn’t considered the leaves, that makes sense.
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Winter photography can be a challenge and it takes effort to find color and contrast. You have, as always. And to find that Christmas tree, what fun! More “winter weather” on the way this evening into tomorrow.
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Maybe a little dirt but a lot of the color seems to be leaf lignin from all of the trees around here.
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Thanks! Call us silly optimists, but we always have our sunglasses along just in case some sunshine appears (before we get back to the trailhead). 😎
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So are those colors in the ice some combination of algae and dirt?
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Hiking is always a great way to start the year!
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Nice photos as always. We were hoping to snowshoe today but the snow was too packed. Maybe after our next snow we can get the snowshoes out again. We started our hike under clouds but the sun came out half way and I wish I’d brought my sunglasses!
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