April 01, 2007

Melting

Branch against ice

The ice is melting.

At Pretty Colour Lake, the snowmelt from the hills runs into the lake, which overflows onto the trail, filling it with puddles and deep mud. Streams of cold clear water come trickling down the hills that surround the lake, shooting right across the trail. The ice on the lakes is melting fast now, but a big expanse of light blue ice still floats on the west end of the lake, with thin clear ice forming near the edges on cold nights. This lake is famous for its deep green colour, but this time of year, the pale ice reflects sky, and the lake is streaked with blue.

As my husband and I took a walk around the lake yesterday, we passed a bunch of kids playing in the mud. "Hey, you know what I discovered?" said one kid to his friends. "It hurts to put your fist through ice. It's sharp!"

The air was still cold in the shade of the cedar trees, but whenever the trail wound into the sun, I would unzip my fleece. How good the sun feels at the end of winter. We found a bench in the sun so we could sit and talk, looking out over the lake that was melting, melting, melting even as we watched.

At the far end of the lake, where the beach is, we heard a bunch of teenagers laughing and applauding as two of them stripped off their clothes and went running into the icy water. I have done that kind of thing many times myself so I just imagine how it felt. There is something exhilarating about plunging your whole self into ice water: every nerve ending tingles, every muscle feels like it's just been massaged, and body awareness crowds out all rational thought.

Ice melting

15 comments:

Aliki2006 said...

Absolutely breath-taking pictures--both of them. I've always wanted to jump into water in the winter--I've been in some cold water in April and May, so I can imagine what it must feel like...but winter water--oh my!

Anonymous said...

I'm so sick of rational thought these days that your post really speaks to me. Let's all go skinny-dipping!

flutter said...

Stunning.

listie said...

Beautiful pictures. A shiver ran through me just reading about jumping into that icy water.

St. Casserole said...

Beautiful pictures!

I've never seen ice on a lake.

Jumping into icy water? Whoa!

ccw said...

Beautiful pictures!

niobe said...

Would it be very wrong to say that my first thought when I saw your title was: "I'm melting! Melting! Who would have thought that some little girl like you could destroy my beautiful wickedness?"

Anonymous said...

I used to be a polar bear, but now that I am a crone, I am a little nervous about that heart-stopping rush. It sure was exciting! And scary!

WOW!

The ice here went out about a week and a half ago. Skunk cabbages are flowering and catkins drooping and pussywillows expanding and peepers peeping.

No new posts for me, too busy. Love your blog! Lupo.

Yankee T said...

Great photos. Please call me when you go jumping in ice cold water next, so I can make the hot tea.
I hate winter. I hate being cold.
But I love the Spring.

BeachMama said...

Gorgeous photos. Although I don't live that close to a lake, I had a similar experience this weekend. I just had to sit in the sun and let it warm me up. In one afternoon I think I recovered from the cold this winter. And I got a nice little tan too.

Mona Buonanotte said...

I need a dip in a cold lake...whew! Hot flash! Or maybe the furnace is set too high....

Jennifer (ponderosa) said...

Now I know for sure that living where you do is similar to living at Mt. Bachelor... Ice up there just thinking about melting, too.

You're so brave. I would neverever jump into water that cold!

Kyla said...

Brrrr!! When I was younger, I was playing outside and took a nap on the diving board of our swimming pool in the middle of winter. I was all bundled up in my winter clothes and coat. In my sleep, I rolled over right into the water. Wow! Is that ever a rude wkae up call! It was completely shocking and I couldn't figure out how I got from my bed into this water until I was able to climb out and my brain started working again.

jo(e) said...

Kyla: What a memory!

Niobe: It's funny -- I thought the same thing when I wrote the title.

Ampersand said...

These photos are exquisite...and your words make a beautiful accompanienment (I had to google that to get the right spelling :)).