Yesterday I had my first chance for this winter to get out into the woods for a bit to enjoy the snow by myself.As I drove up the parking lot at Vaattunkiköngäs there were no cars there and I thought this looks promising!
The trail was ok to walk without snowshoes as people do visit here daily and the trail stays open enough.
There are several lean-to's in the area and though they aren't usually super crowded it is rare to get to be all by your lonesome in this area. Today all I found was smoke from visitors gone by and silence.
And some silence it was! I have to say it is a long time since I have had such a profound experience of absolute stillness! As I stepped deeper and deeper into the forest the air did not move, and the enormous amount of snow we've had recently muffled the rest of any sounds there might have been. It feels so odd to be in a place which is big around you but feels like it cuddles you tightly in its absolute silence.
The monochromatic landscape also plays a bit of a trick on your eyes, and so does the amount of light. The pristine white snow makes the landscape seem brighter than it actually it is, and it's a good thing it does because we are only a few days from the center of midwinter which marks the point when the days will get longer again.
And from a visual point of view what's truly cool in a surrounding almost entirely void of color is how textures come out stronger.
I usually work with many colors in my weaving but I would love to do a project solely based on texture. That would be a really welcome challenge for me!
