All that fresh snow made the roads rather treacherous. At one time,in the middle of the remote Santa Fe National Forrest, there was a traffic jam of 6 vehicles, all in varying states of being stuck. Everyone was hopping out to help push, or get their shovels to help free tires from piles of snow. This is all part of the ambiance and adventure of hunting for ones own tree in the Southern Rockies. And in the "You know you're in a small town when..." category, Dave worked with one of the other stranded travelers. Below is one of the cars being dug out so it could be turned around and head to better road conditions.
After getting the cars, trucks and trailers all ready to head for home, we tromped off into the woods (through all that snow, up to my knees in most places.) In addition to finding trees, it was great aerobic exercise! Kate and Mike found their first Christmas tree (they were married in July.)
Dave and I found our tree. We have been getting trees this way for 25 years or so, with only a few years of exception to the tradition. However, I had decided long ago that the adventure of sliding off the road, digging out the truck, and tromping through feet of snow was really a better memory than it was a reality. So letting tree cutting be more of a "guy thing", Dave and the boys did it for years. Now, with no boys, I decided it's time to rediscover the joys of doing this as a couple!
And finally, we poured cups of hot tea, ate oranges and trail mix, loaded the trees on Mike's trailer, and prayed that we would make it up the hill and out to the road- which we did! It was a lovely adventure!
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