February Summary -- Quick Short Month

Well, another month has come and gone quite quickly. This is a summary of February as I saw it at the ranch. Kind of a mellow month as winter months go, and each day shows the approaching spring.

February 2010 (Slide Show)


Sunday, February 28, 2010
Clear overnight followed by a sunny dry day (well, actually, it was wet where the snow is melting and the water running).

Sunny Morning view from the Deck


Saturday, February 27, 2010
Clouds overnight resulted in just a little light snow overnight (0.1" ... VERY little). This quickly disappeared as the temperature rose during the morning and throughout the day. Some sunlight showed up during the early afternoon walk with the dogs. The sky cleared late in the day and clear conditions may again result in the low going to the middle twenty degree range.

Ginger in Sunlight during Today's Walk


Friday, February 26, 2010
Mostly clear conditions overnight helped to push the overnight low to just below twenty degrees. Partly cloudy sky conditioned during most of the day and resulted in a good warm-up. Good thing, too. The packed snow has formed ice in the corrals, and today one of the horses managed to "cast" himself against a fence and couldn't stand up on the ice without help (oops, no images taken ... too busy getting him back on his feet). After adding some stall footing for traction and removing the fence rails, he got up and appears to be fine. (Just kind of tired after lying there for an hour or so and trying to get up before we saw him). After that event, all was well and the day continued with the sun cloud mix we see on many of these late winter days.

Morning Merge of Paddock Sunshine at Shelter


Thursday, February 25, 2010
A good mix of weather in NW Montana today. The first animal check just before sunrise was with snow pellets on the ground from a little overnight activity. The sky was mostly cloudy for the morning with a cooling rainfall during my run today. An early afternoon walk started in sunshine enough that I debated going back for sunglasses but ended 25 minutes later with a light rain falling! Later in the day, I took a trip down into the valley and it was spectacular mix of sun and clouds with a combination of rain and snow going on around the edges of the valley. The evening sky cleared and is likely to give us a low in the low 20's again tonight. South facing hills are continuing to lose the snow day by day.

Sun Cloud Mix around the Area Today (Slide Show)


Wednesday, February 24, 2010
A change in the conditions today with mostly cloudy sky starting the day and hanging around for the duration. There was just a light snow flurry or two in the air but nothing measurable (I wouldn't even call it a "trace" just a flake or two in the air). During the afternoon, I gathered some of the winter baling twine and other debris and held the first barrel fire event for the year. Late in the day, as the sun was setting, there was a bit of color in the sky to the east (but not photographed). The last animal check had a mix of clouds, stars and the growing moon lighting the way back to the house.

Fire in the Barrel


Tuesday, February 23, 2010
Clear sky overnight again resulted in temperatures nearing the single digits. Frosty buildings today as the sun shine again works on the south facing slopes to bring the snow line down the hill. The paddock snow is packed and icy from daily horse activity. General snow conditions are quite light with probably 4-5" in level areas. The outer pasture might still have 8" or so, but it is old snow and could disappear quickly with a couple of days above freezing.

Walking the Line in Mid-day Sunshine


Monday, February 22, 2010
Mostly clear conditions overnight. There were some clouds early in the morning, but the rest of the day was almost totally clear. This can be a good thing, except, during the winter it means that overnight it can be a bit cool. The sun of the day is still not quite enough to melt away all of the snow. However, it has melted along the house and Taffy decided to decorate the flower box while watching over the ranch late today.

Taffy in the Window Flower Box


Sunday, February 21, 2010
Totally clear overnight. Totally cold this morning. But, day by day, the snow line is moving down the hill. The deer are beginning to gather on the hill above the ranch. Spring cannot be far away.

North Hill Deer are Returning


Saturday, February 20, 2010
A mix of overnight clouds gave way to mostly sunny conditions for today. It was somewhat cooler than the last few days but the sun made it quite a nice day.

Sunny View from the Deck Today


Friday, February 19, 2010
Blue sky and sunny conditions existed for most of the day today. This led to a little horsing around in the background, too. The late afternoon had some clouds but they gave way late in the day to allow the stars to shine through once again.

Blue Sky with background Horsing Around


Thursday, February 18, 2010
Overnight appeared to have been a continuation of the cloud mix from yesterday. This morning, the clouds broke apart allowing mostly sunny conditions until mid afternoon. The mostly cloudy conditions that developed during the early afternoon continued throughout the rest of the day. But just after the time of sunset (not seen, since it was cloudy yet) the clouds broke-up again and will result in colder overnight temperatures to repeat.

Mostly Sunny Panorama Just after Noon


Wednesday, February 17, 2010
The stars were shining overnight and the morning started with broken clouds and sun mixed together. Most of the day was sunny with an amazing mix of clouds in the area.

Away from the ranch from time to time now, as the outdoor running sessions have begun.

Clouds with Sunrise Pending


Tuesday, February 16, 2010
Cloudy day today with some rain around mid-day. The clouds remained all day with fog banks hanging just above the tree line again while the higher hills still peeked through.

Fog with Hills Peeking Through


Monday, February 15, 2010
The cycle of light overnight snowfall followed by warm conditions resulted in a return of some fog this morning. Although the sun tried to break through, mostly cloudy conditions continued for the day. There were lines of low clouds just above the tree line, but still allowing the hilltops to show.

Morning Sun tries to Burn through the Fog


Sunday, February 14, 2010
The day began with the red of the sun coloring the sky and clouds. Some of those clouds parted from time to time to allow light sunlight along with a little warming of the air a bit more each day.

Morning Sky again Glows


Saturday, February 13, 2010
Clouds overnight and for most of the morning today. Some breaks in the cloudiness during the mid-afternoon. Continued above normal temperatures for this time of year.

Corner View at the Paddock Fence


Friday, February 12, 2010
About an inch of wet snow overnight. This lined the tree branches nicely but did not stay very long as the temperature warmed, rising into the upper 30's. Fog developed as a result of the rapid snow melt and almost hid the horses from view as they munched at lunch-time. Later in the afternoon, blue sky and sunshine returned. (See a slide show video of the changes at the ranch that took place today...Click to go to YouTube video).

Mid-day Fog Hides the Horses


Thursday, February 11, 2010
There was just a little light snow overnight. The clouds that delivered the snow remained all day today. Temperatures continue to remain mild and the "mellow winter" made it through another quiet, if colorless, day.

View of the Ranch this Afternoon


Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Mostly cloudy, again, but there was just a ray or two of sun during the afternoon today.

Some Shadows during light Afternoon Sun


Tuesday, February 09, 2010
Mostly cloudy with just a light scattering of snow today.

Just a Hint of Sun behind the Afternoon Clouds


Monday, February 08, 2010
Continuing with the cloudy conditions today. Pretty much the same all around with just a little rain to the north during the afternoon.

A Horse in the Woods


Sunday, February 07, 2010
Cloudy, with temperatures holding at mild values for this time of the year.

It was a Super Day for Resting on the Couch


Saturday, February 06, 2010
Light overnight snow and full cloud cover for the day again.

Walking the Line


Friday, February 05, 2010
Color in the sky to start the day today. The clouds persisted through the day continuing the mostly cloudy trend for this month.

Morning Glow


Thursday, February 04, 2010
Mostly foggy with clouds around the edges today.

Fog over the Ranch


Wednesday, February 03, 2010
Mostly cloudy with fog around the edges today.

Jonah with Fog around the Edges of the Pasture


Tuesday, February 02, 2010
Mostly cloudy, but with a scattering of sun during the early afternoon. Late afternoon saw increasing cloud cover along with periods of dense fog.

Animal Farm Images from Today (Click to go to facebook album)

Closest to Sunshine as it got Today


Monday, February 01, 2010
A light fluffing of snow overnight. Mostly cloudy conditions through the day.

Snow Branches Frame the Ranch