Winter Wonders

This region is beautiful in all seasons...even on a cold January day we find the fields, woods and rivers breathtaking and sometimes surprising in the most subtle ways.

The Chandler River meanders through our town and empties into the Royal River which eventually dumps into Casco Bay in Yarmouth about ten miles away. Part of the Chandler follows the road just a mile from our house and is the site of an old dam. A grist mill operated there more than a century and a half ago. None of the antique building remains but it must have been a busy place when farmers from the surrounding area brought crops to be processed.

In spring the dam is raging with melted ice waters that rush down from Runaround Pond just a few miles to the north.

In summer the dam is frequented by local fisherman, young and old alike, who are hoping to hook a brook trout, perch or other small freshwater fish. My youngest son dropped his wormed lines there many times as a kid and proudly brought his trophies home to show us. Most of the little critters were too small to eat so they were carefully released into our farm pond.

Today during our walk with Koda we stopped to watch the water tumbling over the dam as we have a thousand times before. The dams action had produced perfectly round icebergs with slightly turned up edges that looked just like pond lilies...only made of ice. The swirling water must've given them their shape. If I had painted them accurately..it might not be believed.

Tomorrow the bitter temps are due rise above freezing and so the icy rondelles will melt away, but I have photos and proof of the winter lilies floating in the sun..