Take the Back Road

Just when you thought for sure that we must have 

fallen off a cliff or gotten lost in the wilderness...

I'm baaaack....

We pulled out of Laurel yesterday morning under clear skies and with high hopes for a "bright, bright, sunshiny day." But alas, it was not to be. By the time we got half an hour down the road to Columbus, the clouds were gathering and spitting rain. Still, we continued on to Big Timber and Natural Bridge. Despite the rain, we walked the trails on both sides of the falls. We started down the trail to the pool at the base of the falls, but it is pretty steep. With a  just a little snow on it, it was too much for Dan's old boots with poor traction and for my nerves of silk. (Er, steel, I meant to say nerves of steel! ) Back at the truck, with the rain turning to snow, we decided to leave the ATV's right where they were -- on the rack! 

We always see tons of deer on this drive, largely because the property on either side of the road is mostly private and marked No Hunting. This trip was no different and we got to spend several minutes watching a large mule deer buck herd his does and keep the younger, smaller bucks in check. 

By the time we go back to the interstate, the clouds were clearing, of course. It's been a while since we took the "back way" home, because we are usually pulling either the camper or the ATV trailer. It was fun to meander the gravel roads, stopping every once in a while to photograph the cool clouds and then the sunset. We worked our way generally south and east and eventually we hit the pavement again and wrapped up another enjoyable outing. 

I don't know what caused the rays. It definitely wasn't the sun,
 because that was setting behind us,
 and this was in front of us. I almost didn't
 point it out to Dan because I thought I was seeing things!