The Landscape of November

Before we say good-bye to November, I feel obliged to document this unique season that we sometimes get in late fall before winter.  It's the season of bare, leafless trees, of dull browns and greys, cold temperatures and often wet conditions.  Some years we don't get this at all if the snow comes quickly and covers it in white.  This year it's only snowed once in the month, and we're getting an extended 'November Season'.  It's not what you'd call 'pretty', but I like it because the landscape is laid bare so to speak.

Let's start off with the better days - we do get sunny days and blue skies occasionally in November.  This is one of my favourite views across farm fields, here the corn recently harvested.  You couldn't see the farm until they did that.

One more sunny day view before we switch to more typical November weather.  Across miles of the landscape, the trees are all just bare, though some hayfields retain a touch of green.

This is the bad weather.  I just can't warm up to days of rain when the temperature is close to freezing.  It's not much good for anything except staying indoors.  And the hazy mist in the distance totally cuts off the view of Georgian Bay.

I've got great fall pictures of this line of trees in brilliant reds and orange.  But this is its November look, on another wet day.

At least it was dry this day.  One advantage is that with the leaves gone you can see a long way through the trees.

Simple gates have been closed, and the cattle gathered into the barn or nearby for winter.  Here the 'gate' is just a bit of fencing that is stretched across the opening.

A few fields are ploughed, where farmers are renewing hayfields, or rotating their crops, though most cropland is now just chisel-ploughed.  I've always thought this farmstead looked particularly well cared for, but I need a sunny day photo to show it off.

In a few places I saw field with a fair dusting of snow today.  It's likely that this results just from very localized snow squalls rather than remaining from our last snowfall over a week ago.

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Walking Time: 1 hour.  I finished the cardiac rehab program nearly a month ago, and it's amazing how fast your dedication to getting the time in wanes!  In the past I've counted steps, and counted distance.  I've used treadmills and bikes.  This summer I was riding my 'real' bike around the roads (that's what I enjoy most).  In the more distant past I worked out regularly, and skated for fun.  The cardiac rehab program measures time spent in effort serious enough to raise your heart rate.

The loop road in our little subdivision can be walked in easy 15 minute increments.  So now my plan is to walk the dog for part of my time every day, and go for a longer walk on a trail someplace two or three times a week.  My goal is to get in an hour a day, on average, over the week.  So I'm going to post my times here, just to remind myself.  I'm inspired by a certain blogger I read who gets up in the dark and walks 5 or 6 miles every day!  I can't do that, but I think I can achieve my modest target.  And you can keep me honest.

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