The weather gods were kind today, as if to apologize for the dreariness of last week and the nastiness of the coming week: tomorrow’s forecast calls for a Nor’easter with high winds and a month’s worth of rain in a couple of days.

In contrast, today was pleasantly benign. A bit of sunshine, a few puffs of veiling fog and a light breeze on the trail, although close to the edge that light breeze turned into a stun breeze that tried to knock over my 10 pound tripod on several occasions.

In the morning I hiked the start of the Deadmans Bay Path, from Fort Amherst to Freshwater Bay and back:

Foggy view of Signal Hill – Deadmans Bay Path

Peaceful foggy day – Deadmans Bay Path

On top of the hills – Deadmans Bay Path

Sun pokes through the fog – Deadmans Bay Path

Frequent readers of this blog will know we haven’t had much of a winter here yet, and today I found a surprising reminder of that fact:

Spring blossom on winter’s doorstep – Deadmans Bay Path

A crackerberry blossom was peacefully enjoying the sun, unaware of the date, December 20th, one day before the official start of winter.

I also found crackerberry plants submerged in a puddle of rainwater:

Drowned crackerberries – Deadmans Bay Path

Something else interesting:

Wood with blue-stain fungi – Deadmans Bay Path

These blue-green stained pieces of dead wood are a common sight along the East Coast Trail, for the longest time I didn’t know what they were until I read about them here.

My evening hike was reserved for Father Troy’s Trail, where I had an appointment with a rising moon:

Twilight at 4 PM – Father Troy’s Trail

Full moon through the haze – Father Troy’s Trail

Tonight at 3:03 AM the moon will meet up with Earth’s shadow in what will be the first Winter Solstice Lunar Eclipse in over 300 years. Try saying that three times fast. In Newfoundland, look up from 4:11 AM to 5:23 AM (early morning of December 21) for the full lunar eclipse, providing the clouds don’t spoil the show.