Full disclosure: I’m not a fan of winter. As soon as the days darken and the temperature plummets, I’m in full whining mode. But I do enjoy reading the stories of wildlife in the snow.

When we’re out hiking we often see deer and elk tracks, and sometimes even moose, depending on where we are. On snowy treks during different years, I’ve also found tracks from mountain lions and even bears. (I think the latest I’ve seen them was around Thanksgiving). It’s always a treat if there are multiple tracks and evidence of interaction to see if I can figure out what happened.

Even in our backyard we can see where the deer come through. Where the neighborhood cats choose to roam. Where the voles burrow beneath the snow head for a shrub to eat.

Snow Tales

One of the more interesting snow stories in the yard was a month ago, after a particularly nasty storm. It was below zero with at least 8 inches of fresh powder, yet when I went outside I noticed tiny tracks zig-zagging across the snow near the house. It was a mouse on a walkabout, which really surprised me, since it was so terribly cold. I couldn’t imagine a tiny little creature being above the snow in such frigid conditions.

Even after studying the track patterns, I can’t quite figure out why the little guy was out. What was worth venturing out on top of the snow, above the reach of any of the vegetables or plants in the garden? I truly don’t know. Maybe the mouse was wishful thinking, looking for some sort of food source, but it took a lot of gumption.

A Courageous Mouse

The other interesting part was the mouse also traveled in a tunnel right along the house. When I first noticed the inch-wide hole near the vent in the house, I thought the mouse found a way into the house, and I was going to do something to stop that since having mice in the house is something that creeps me out. (I wouldn’t be so bothered except for that whole disease spreading thing about them.)

Fortunately, the mouse didn’t go into the vent, it only went along the side of the foundation from one end to the other. This was basically a mouse thoroughfare, and since it didn’t look like the mouse was able to access the house, I just studied the patterns. I didn’t want to destroy any of the hard work it probably took going through the snow.

Winter time provides a good opportunity to take a walk outside to see what’s going on in and around your garden even when you’re not a daily part of it. After a snow, take a stroll to read the tracks. I think you’ll be surprised at how much happens when it everything is (or should be) asleep.