Back in the 406
I was away out of state for 4-weeks and just returned back home this past Sunday. Thus our EM blog posts and video uploads and Facebook updates will resume.
The larch trees greeted me with their golden beauty when I arrived. Very soon they will drop their needles for weathering the winter. It was 27-degrees when I woke up this morning. Frost glazed the pines & firs in a translucent white. The peaks of the surrounding mountains are salted with snow. In other words, winter is on her way.
While I was away, Mike started needing to have daily fires in the wood stove around the tailend of September. And we have entered the season of time when we need to make regular use of our generator to charge our house batteries for the purposes of electricity. Our solar panels draw a little light here and there but with how low the sun sits already in the sky, the narrowness of our canyon and thick presence of trees, and the fact that western Montana is often quite gray in winter our generator is a crucial member of team Empty Mountain.
Mike has been working a job for pay off site the last few weeks, which means our sauna house build has been on temporary hiatus. But the sauna stove we ordered is here now and we still feel pretty confident we can get the sauna opertational for use over the winter, though we’ll have more to do to complete the building in the spring.
There are a few things we still have to tend to in terms of preparing for winter, but we did manage to get a few things done before I left at the end of September, knowing Mike would be away working full time while I was gone. One never knows when winter will kick off here in western Montana. Some years it’s pretty mild even through December. This year though it’s creeping in before Halloween. Living in the mountains of Montana will keep a person on their toes, as one never fully knows what the weather will be or bring.
Since we will be wintering home this year for the first time since we moved into the woods, there will surely be things we’ll need to learn and figure out along the way. But our systems are set up and we feel strong enough and settled in enough to meet the challenges that may arise.
Once again I will report on how much I appreciate & enjoy living in a place with well-defined seasons. I love getting into the swing of summer: taking trips to the river, the ease of outdoor living, and walking around partially clothed. And I love also getting into the swing of winter: layering up, having fires in the wood stove, soaking in hot springs, and making soup. Each season is its own constellation of loveliness.
Having spent the last 5 winters in southern California, here’s hoping I haven’t forgotten how to be a North country woman. But I reckon it’s a good sign I’m looking forward to it. Much of what goes into what we do and how we are based on where we are centers on our mental approach and attitude.
I’ve missed having a hibernation season these past 5 years. I am someone who is deeply nourished by the quietude, solitude, slow down & stillness of a good cold gray & snowy winter. It’s not for everyone - and it’s probably not for most - but it works pretty well for me. Mike too, though perhaps a little less so. Good news is I will keep you posted about how it goes, versus taking the winter off from blogging about our EM adventures. Cuz this year, we’ll be here.