I woke before first light but could see by the light of the street lamp that there heavy snow plummeted from the heavens, coupled with intense wind. Plump flakes zipped along nearly horizontal to the earth while thick clouds piled over Bend. It took seemed to take forever for morning to arrive.  At 8:30 we realized the storm wasn’t slackening so we bundled up and took the dogs for their regular morning walk up the Butte. Surprisingly we saw four others making their way along the park trail. Everyone was dressed similarly us: goggles, face masks, expeditions style jackets, wind pants, gators, heavy gloves, and so on. There were drifts of two feet and more sifting up along the road. Counter posed were patches of wind-scoured bareness. I was glad for the early morning exertion and ready for a long, snowy day at the computer.