Tag: frost

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Winter Dreams

By Christian Begeman

When winter descends upon the Northern Plains, slumber seems to come easy. The busy-ness of life that abounded in the warmer seasons has either fled south or is hibernating under a blanket of frost and snow. Likewise, for me the temptation to rest under the warmth of a blanket while old man winter toils out of doors is strong. The short daylight and frigid temperatures don’t really offer much incentive for activity, either. Even so, we hardy Dakotans trudge on. Farmers and ranchers continue to care for livestock. Town folks keep the business doors open, the mail going and schools running. Not to mention attending the basketball games and wrestling matches as best we can.

Occasionally, with the right weather conditions, the season of sleep and slumber can provide dreamlike scenes of immense beauty. These winter dreams are something a part-time photographer like me pursues as much as possible. A foggy night can produce frosted landscapes straight from a fairy tale. Frigid cold and wind coupled with an open sky conjure sun dogs that are as breathtaking as the wind biting into your bones.

In this column, I have collected photos from three such days this winter. They are photos of frost and light, or winter dreams, if you will. Starting on December 23, as I began my journey to north central South Dakota for the holidays, I strayed from the main highways after a heavy fog to capture Jack Frost’s handiwork. New Year’s Day dawned frosty and since I had the day off, I took advantage. Finally, January 3 was foggy west of town, so I took another trip to see what I could find.

I won’t try to convince anyone that winter in these parts is always beautiful. Nor is it a particularly easy time of year. But there is beauty to be found and experienced. Seeking out these winter dreams does more than just get off the couch. They are a reminder that even though this season of slumber is strong, it won’t be long until the winter breaks and all will awaken once again. The perfect June evening is made that much more perfect because we have experienced these winter days and nights. And I haven’t seen a fly or mosquito for months. Which is kind of nice.

Christian Begeman grew up in Isabel and now lives in Sioux Falls. When he’s not working at Midco he is often on the road photographing South Dakota’s prettiest spots. Follow Begeman on his blog.

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Nature’s White Quilt

By Christian Begeman

On December 11, the early morning sun broke through low hanging clouds and fog and onto a true winter wonderland in southeastern South Dakota. An early winter system dropping upwards of 10 inches of heavy, wet snow the previous Thursday along with a solid new layer of thick frost from the overnight fog changed the world into an icy work of art. The all-too-brief moment of warm sunshine on a perfectly frosted landscape is one of my favorite bits of winter. The beauty is fleeting; even the slightest breeze combined with the relative warmth of the sun causes the frost to drop to the ground far too soon.

I hadn’t planned on a photo escapade that morning, but after glimpsing the conditions, I quickly decided to get out and enjoy the scenery while the getting was good. Armed with a 100-400mm telephoto lens, a macro lens and long johns, I was heading north along the Big Sioux River faster than you can say”Jack Frost.”

I had a few locations in mind that featured vivid red barns that contrasted with the icy white of winter, but I also made sure to stop and shoot anything else that caught my eye. This included two adult bald eagles on the same tree along the Big Sioux south of Trent. I also took a walk in the tall grass at the Sioux Prairie Preserve near Colman, where my macro lens took over. I discovered unique formations of frost on grass, leaves of ground shrubs and even on a goldenrod gall.

The story of the goldenrod gall fly may not seem like something worth writing about here, but I find it fascinating that inside that very gall, a frosted and frozen larva (nearly frozen solid itself), is simply waiting for spring to emerge, find a mate and start the process all over again. One would think that the larvae is safely tucked away for the winter, but chickadees and downy woodpeckers often seek out the galls, break them open and have a nice meal.

The wonders and intricacies of nature never cease to amaze, even in winter. It makes me think of this quote about wintertime from Lewis Carroll, author of Alice in Wonderland:”I wonder if the snow loves the trees and fields, that it kisses them so gently? And then it covers them up snug, you know, with a white quilt; and perhaps it says, ‘Go to sleep, darlings, till the summer comes again.'”

We Dakotans know that the snow doesn’t always come kissing, but on a sunlit winter’s morn with no wind and frost filled scenery everywhere you look, it isn’t hard to imagine the world sleeping under that white quilt, just waiting for spring’s awakening.

Christian Begeman grew up in Isabel and now lives in Sioux Falls. When he’s not working at Midco he is often on the road photographing South Dakota’s prettiest spots. Follow Begeman on his blog.

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Tour de Frost

By Christian Begeman

France has the Tour de France. Mitchell has the Tour de Corn (which I took part in one year, incidentally, bringing up the rear on the blue, non-road bike). Does anyone have a Tour de Frost? I doubt it, but that definition is how I have begun referring to my recent travels in South Dakota. To be honest, I actually described this column to managing editor John Andrews this way:”A veritable tour de force of frosted landscapes and icy detail.” From”tour de force” to Tour de Frost isn’t too much of a leap even for a simple guy like me. All of that is to say, this column is dedicated to the winter wonderlands I have enjoyed so far this season. It’s all thanks to winter fog that leaves hoarfrost or soft rime ice. This frozen moisture that seemingly appears from nowhere has the power to transform brown and muted winterscapes into magical fairy tale scenes.

The tour starts in northeast South Dakota. A mid-December Saturday weather report spoke of fog around Watertown. There was no snow on the ground, so the prospect of fog and frost was enough to get me on the road. Around Highway 212 west of Watertown is where Jack Frost’s work became remarkable. I stopped at Telemarken and Goodhue Lutheran country churches (both near Wallace) where the soft rime on the wrought iron gates to the churchyards was exquisitely long and beautiful. Further north past Waubay and into the Big Coulee area south of Sisseton, the prairie hills were rich with frost and fine winter scenery. I got my”White Christmas” feeling without a single snowflake falling from the sky.

Just after Christmas, I took a much-needed vacation to Custer State Park for a few days. I started the trip in Walworth County where a light hoarfrost covered the Missouri River hills with an elegant beauty just before the morning sun dispatched it. On my last day in the Black Hills, a heavy fog blanketed northern Wind Cave National Park and the southern reaches of Custer State Park. At a pullout along Red Valley Road, I spent at least half an hour on my belly finding delicate leaves, rose-hips and blades of grass all seemingly coated with sugar. Just as I was getting into my truck after brushing away the clinging ice, a lone coyote appeared from around the bend in the road. He stopped and locked eyes with me. It was quite the moment. After careful consideration and allowing a few shots from this odd-looking paparazzi, he moved off into the frost-laden hillside grass. Later in the day, I found bison lounging on the prairie hills along Custer State Park’s Wildlife Loop Road. Their dark shapes against the icy landscape were a beautiful contrast of strength on strength, life unfazed by the season of death.

The last portion of the tour brought me back to southeastern South Dakota. A heavy fog that slowly burned off during an early January Saturday morning was all it took for me to go looking for red barns against the frosted landscape. These scenes are one of the most beautiful things to discover in winter. I headed for a particular barn in Moody County, and I wasn’t disappointed. The beauty of a frosty day like that is that I found plenty of other wonderland scenes to photograph, a tour de force of winter imagery on this year’s Tour de Frost.

Christian Begeman grew up in Isabel and now lives in Sioux Falls. When he’s not working at Midco he is often on the road photographing South Dakota’s prettiest spots. Follow Begeman on his blog.

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Frosty Wonderland

By Christian Begeman

Winter weather is not usually described in complimentary terms. Subzero temps, the threat of blizzards along with long nights and short days make it difficult to stay on the sunny side of life during a long, South Dakota winter. But there is a certain phenomenon that occurs during our cold months that defies negativity. You could even say that what happens is magical, or maybe miraculous. How else would you describe an event that has the power to turn a dreary, near colorless landscape into a whole new vision of white sparkling scenery? Granted, I may be a little more enthusiastic than most about frost because it is so fun to photograph. Even so, from the smallest ice-spiked detail to a vast winter white vista, frost has the ability to create an actual winter wonderland.

This year, we’ve had snowfall followed by warm spells. The snowmelt puts moisture in the air, and then freezing temps overnight bring fog. This is the perfect recipe for frost. For years, I called the frost from fog”hoarfrost,” but I’ve recently learned that what I shoot is more likely a type of rime frost or ice. Rime ice is similar to what sailors deal with on the sea in cold weather. It happens when super cooled water droplets freeze and attach to an exposed surface that is below freezing. The two kinds of rime are”hard rime” and”soft rime.” I would never have known the difference until this year’s frost quests in late November and late December.

On my way to visit family for Thanksgiving, I ran into thick fog in Edmunds and Walworth counties. There was a steady wind and plenty of moisture in the air, so I knew it would be optimal frost-making weather. On Thanksgiving morning, Dad and I drove out to see Jack Frost’s handiwork and were not disappointed. A thick, hard rime had formed on windward fence lines, trees and tall grass. A couple more frost events took place in southeastern South Dakota in December. One of those had frost designs that I don’t remember seeing before. Long, thick needles of ice formed on the corners of certain leaves and grasses and left tiny designs similar to jumping jacks hanging on the edges. It turns out this kind of frost is soft rime, and the leaves on which I found it — at Big Sioux Recreation Area near Brandon — couldn’t have been more beautiful.

I had the morning off during another frost event in late December, so I took a drive to see if I could find new scenes of beauty a little farther afield. In Lake County, the sun came out for a few minutes east of Ramona, just as I spotted an old barn with a red brick silo standing sentinel. The red-orange color contrasted with the sun-brightened, white landscape in a remarkable way. That same morning, I happened upon a happy Northern Cardinal couple foraging along the trail at Lake Herman State Park. The male would fly up from the ground intermittently in order to scan the area for intruders. During one of those look out sessions, I happened to catch a photo of his exquisite red feathers against the white of the frosted morning. It was another magical moment brought by the cold beauty of a South Dakota frosted morning, and another reason why it wouldn’t take much to convince me that there is a little bit of magic at play on a frosty day.

Christian Begeman grew up in Isabel and now lives in Sioux Falls. When he’s not working at Midcontinent Communications he is often on the road photographing South Dakota’s prettiest spots. Follow Begeman on his blog.