Picture of the day - January 17, 2009

"Nature's Snowballs"

Photo courtesy of Ron E. Trees.       (Click photo for a larger view.) Our friends up in the Pacific Northwest have had to endure record snowfalls so far this fall and winter, and as expected frequent contributor Ron Trees has been putting his camera to good use capturing some gorgeous images of their winter wonderland. Today's picture showcases some of God's wintertime handiwork that is just a little out of the realm of the ordinary. Here is Mr. Trees to tell us about this very intriguing image: "I went outside about midday on 12/29/2009. It had snowed the night before and we had had very brisk winds. There were gusts of 50mph according to the news! The storm had blown over and the day was cold, but very beautiful. Where the fields had been snow covered before, but still fairly smooth, they were now covered with “snowballs”. I have never seen anything like it before. Maybe it is common place in other places, but I sure have never seen it before. The snow must have had just enough moisture to make it stick, but was still light enough to be rolled by the winds. All of the open fields around our place were covered with these snowballs. The largest were maybe 12” in diameter. It was pretty cool looking. I had to grab my camera and take a few photos."     --Ron Trees Mr. Trees invites you to visit his gallery where you'll find lots more of his wonderful photographs.     Visitor Comments... Name: Rick Rouse Town: Abingdon, VA What a great photo Ron! I have never seen anything like that either.     Name: Hazel Compton Town: Chillicothe, OH We're in the "deep freeze" at the moment so it's a great time to stay indoors and check out all these wonderful pictures. I LOVE this one Ron!     Name: Phyllis Helton Town: Bristol, VA Let's make a snowman. Great photo, delightful phenomenon.     Name: Gary Bolton Town: San Antonio, TX Now that's something you don't see everyday. Intriguing.     Name: Gordon Hemmings Town: London, Ontario I have seen this phenomenon many times here is Canada. As Mr. Trees stated, it takes a somewhat "perfect" set of circumstances for it to occur, but it isn't at all rare (at least it isn't up here). Great picture by the way.   Comment on today's picture  |  View previous "Pictures Of The Day"  |  Submit a photo Why I publish the "Picture Of The Day"