Innehållsförteckning för January 2018 från Country Extra

Snow makes the wild landscape of Yellowstone National Park appear even more undiscovered, as my husband, Scott, and I learned while cross-country skiing past waterfalls in the Mammoth Hot Springs area. In summer, the falls fill the air with a deafening roar, but in winter they are silenced by the thick block of ice through which the water still moves. Scott and I slid by steaming hot springs that, despite their temperature, had snow cover right to the very edges. We slipped into the trees where the trail climbed so steeply that for a little while we had to sidestep in our skis to get up the hill. Then we were at the top, where the trees gave way to an open meadow. By ourselves in swirling white, we saw…

“I love that feeling of nostalgia I get when I see fluffy flakes falling from the sky. I think about bundling up for fun in the snow and slipping on my warm mittens, lovingly knit by my grandpa Bill.”– AMY FRISINGER Meridian, Indiana Wood stoves in the basement and in the living room were the main source of heat on our small farm in Maine. We had an oil tank, but my dad had it preset. He was proud that he could make one tankful last an entire season. That’s an impressive feat in Maine. Going down into the basement and refilling the stove with wood was my least favorite chore. I would have rather gone outside in subzero temperatures to feed the chickens. My other least favorite chore was…

One of my favorite things to do is to go back in time. On a cold winter’s day, I imagine myself living in the 1800s. My little log cabin sits beside a rippling creek. My husband is out working in the field, and our four daughters are enjoying the sunshine. We wash our clothes in the creek first thing. We love how they smell when we take them off of the line. The cows come up to the fence along with the horses and donkey. The girls take food to them. Meanwhile, I forage through the hen house. Twelve eggs today! Then we go to work in the garden. The birds’ song makes my spirit soar. All the while, I’m silently talking to God and thanking him for all of…

EASY PORK POSOLE GREG FONTENOT THE WOODLANDS, TEXAS PREP: 30 min. • COOK: 6 hours • MAKES: 8 servings 1 Tbsp. canola oil 1/2 lb. boneless pork shoulder butt roast, cubed 1/2 lb. fully cooked andouille sausage links, sliced 6 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth 2 medium tomatoes, seeded and chopped 1 can (16 ounces) hominy, rinsed and drained 1 cup minced fresh cilantro 1 medium onion, chopped 4 green onions, chopped 1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped 2 garlic cloves, minced 1 Tbsp. chili powder 1 tsp. ground cumin 1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper 1/2 tsp. coarsely ground pepper Optional ingredients: corn tortillas, chopped onion, minced fresh cilantro and lime wedges DIRECTIONS 1. In a large skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat. Brown pork and sausage; drain. Transfer to a 4-qt.…

1 Voyageurs National Park MINNESOTA Tucked away on the boundary between Minnesota and Canada, Voyageurs offers more than 218,000 acres of undeveloped boreal forest and remote lakes. Light pollution is minimal, and in winter extremely cold weather means little moisture in the air. “This results in very clear night skies,” explains retired park aquatic ecologist Geoffrey Smith. “You also have a good chance of seeing the northern lights (aurora borealis) this far north.” Zodiac constellations like Gemini, Cancer and Taurus also will be visible now. For optimal viewing try the Voyageurs Forest Overlook parking lot. Families can stop by the visitor center and get details on the Night Explorer Junior Ranger program. nps.gov/voya 2 Death Valley National Park CALIFORNIA Death Valley is an International Dark Sky…

“I saw pieces of ice the size of a house drifting down the river.” – RAYMOND L. SNOKE Grandpa Snoke had just come in from feeding his many cats and Poncho, his miniature beagle. Outside it was near zero degrees, and a few inches of snow covered the ground, giving the land the look of an absolute winter wonderland. Grandma was in the kitchen cooking a pan of cornmeal mush with fresh sausage crumbled into the sizzling slices. Along with a bowl of steaming hot oatmeal covered in brown sugar and cream, this was a breakfast fit for a king. As usual, I also grabbed a couple of freshly baked cookies from the cookie jar to dunk into my cereal. Having eaten until my tummy was as full as…

WINTER TRANSFORMS Michigan’s Upper Peninsula into an arctic landscape covered in deep snow and sculpted ice formations. At Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore, waterfalls and runoff from melting snow freeze on the cliffs, creating frozen curtains and spectacular blue ice caves along the shores of Lake Superior. Though I grew up in Michigan, I had never experienced winter in the Upper Peninsula. I wanted to try ice climbing, a popular sport in the U.P., so last year my friends and I connected with a climbing guide and joined him on a weekend trip to Pictured Rocks. We rented climbing gear from Down Wind Sports in Marquette. They fitted us with boots, crampons and ice axes, and then we were ready to make the hour-long drive east to Munising to start climbing.…

“Even those who don’t like the snow admit this is one of the most beautiful settings they have ever seen.” – CINDY BUTHERUS Valdez, Alaska, known as Snow Town, gets more snow than any other in the state. On average, 300 inches fall in town each year, and 600 inches fall in Thompson Pass coming into town. Valdez is in a sheltered bay of Prince William Sound, surrounded by the Chugach Mountains. The nearest stoplight is over 250 miles away in Palmer. My husband, Randy, and I live on the edge of Valdez. Our street was part of a homestead long before a bridge crossed Mineral Creek to get to the area. The owners barged their supplies to the beach and then hauled them home. When they sold the…

Growing up on a farm in Pelkie, Michigan, my siblings and I had a slightly different idea of fun than the rest of the world. A prime example was the winter my older sister, Denise, my younger sister, Kate, and I concocted an idea: use Dad’s half-grown dairy calves as sled dogs. Catching a calf isn’t easy. Although bottle-raised calves are fairly friendly, they don’t really care to be restrained and haltered. However, we cornered an unsuspecting heifer in the barn and got a halter on her. Then we alternated between dragging the calf and being dragged as we made our way through a series of gates to the snow-packed driveway. Once outside, there was a bit of a struggle to attach the calf to the sled, but we finally…

When I was a child, our dogs were my best friends. So when my 10-year-old son, Keeret, asked for a pet, we adopted a black puppy and named her Pepper. She was shy and slow to warm up to us at first. We never heard a bark in the first six months. But then lo and behold, upon our return from work, Pepper came bounding up to the front door, expressing complaints for having been left home without company. Around this time, I learned I was pregnant. My first pregnancy had been tough, and Keeret was born prematurely. Pepper’s comforting presence helped quell my anxiety. When I began suffering pain one day, I disregarded it and went out shopping. By the time I got home, the agony was unbearable. I…

I took this photo of an inquisitive squirrel the morning after six inches of snow fell. Not many animals are around in the winter except for the birds and squirrels. It’s nice to watch them when they come around. After filling the bird feeder, I threw some seeds out for the squirrels so they’d leave the feeder alone. Then I sat at the dining room window with my camera and waited for the birds so I could take photos. This squirrel had dug a hole in the snow, and I captured the moment when it peeked out and snatched up the seeds I had left for it.…

March comes in like a lion and goes out like a lamb “The lion in winter, or the constellation Leo, appears in a pattern of a backward question mark dominant in the clear nighttime sky. It disappears low on the western predawn horizon as the month moves on, and it is replaced by the lamb, Aries.” A year of snow, fruit will grow “Apples and peaches need a number of hours with the temperature below 45 degrees before the trees are ready to respond to spring warmth. The cold prevents premature growth and increases the chances of a full and bountiful crop.. Snow cover prevents the daytime temperatures from increasing above the 45-degree threshold.” If a rooster crows before bed, he’ll wake with a wet head “Folks who are greatly…

MYSTERY PHOTO  Guess where Leland Howard shot this supernatural landscape. Find the answer on page 56.…

“I am grateful for each home and the four generations of family they represent. I feel blessed to be surrounded by this heritage.” – JUNE CHILDS Come with me to a log cabin that sits back in the yard and draws the attention of many who drive along our lovely country road in Tennessee. My great-grandfather Henry C. Carney, whose portrait hangs over the fireplace, built the one-room structure in the 1840s and raised his family here. William, his son and my grandfather, did the same. At some point, a country home was built around the cabin, hiding it from view. The property was sold, and lost to our family until the day we bought it back. The neighbor who owned the country home was tearing it down. My…

My nephew asked, “Why does Nana have so many Bibles?” I said,“She’s studying for finals.” JAMES WEHLER Radford, Virginia Furry Foolery My dog, Shadow, is smart as a whip, but she sheds like crazy. One day Shadow brought me a tuft of her black fur. I thought, I wonder where she found that? But I rewarded her with a treat and put the fur in the trash. Later, she traded a second clump of fur for a treat. When she brought me another one, I realized it looked familiar. Sure enough, there was no fur in the trash. Shadow was trading the same tuft for treats. She knew she was busted and innocently put her head on her paws and fell asleep. JOYCE ANCRILE Vienna, West…

“If we had no winter, the spring would not be so pleasant; if we did not sometimes taste of adversity, prosperity would not be so welcome.” — ANNE BRADSTREET THE EARLY MORNING LIGHT wakes me, but I don’t move. Snuggled deep under the covers, nose barely peeking out, I make a mental inventory of the layers of my bed cocoon from the bottom up: red wool socks; ankle-length plaid flannel nightgown; soft, well-worn cotton sheets; a plaid wool blanket; a down comforter. When it is coldest, I add an afghan. Two pillows, one under my head and one on top, form an earmuff. This keeps my ears warm and muffles my husband Jim’s gentle snoring. I feel I could stay here all day, all month, or at least until the…