What a difference a year makes.

I rode the snowmobile trails in Wayne County today...actually, right in my old neighborhood. The land of wild beasts and wilder men. That beautiful, mythical place; North Huron. Now it's not just plain old 'Huron' mind you. Any son or daugter of this fabled land will be quick to reprimand you should you allow such a slip of your tongue. Not that we have anything against Huron. After all, North Huron is just a part of the larger township. But we North Huronites take pride in the fact that local historical records regard North Huron as having been the last bastion of untamed wilderness in Wayne County in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. This legacy has continued to be epitomized by the rugged farmers and other colorful residents past and present who hail from here. My travels today took me to Chimney Bluffs State Park. Chimney Bluffs is the local landmark that the Town of Huron identifies itself with; and most especially represents...North Huron. It hasn't really been a developed state park for very long, only about 5 years now; though the state has owned the land for many years. Some really beautiful snowmobile trails run through the park...one of them right out to the top of the highest bluff above the shore. The trails that I was on today are in rather stark contrast to those I've been riding in Cayuga County the past 5 weeks. The latter are primarily old rail beds, and though they go through some pretty territory, they are pancake flat and arrow straight. The trails I rode today traverse through much more varied terrain. Hardwoods, pines, open fields, expansive apple orchards, the frozen inland Sodus Bay; and constantly change direction even being twisty in some sections. The conditions were epic also. Practically the entire widths of the trails were very hard and rideable, absolutely no wind, and the temperature stayed just below freezing. On to the next photo please. They built the stone monument pictured above at the western entrance to the park. It's actually well executed and quite attractive in my view, and as you can see from the photo below it is intended to be a representation of the numerous eroding spires or 'chimneys' that characterize the bluffs at the face of the shoreline and give them their name. These formations can be found in many places along the southern shoreline of Lake Ontario, particularly to the east of Rochester, and have formed as the lake waters have eroded at the face of some of the hundreds of drumlins that blanket the Finger Lakes Region; some of which happen to extend to the shoreline. Chimney Bluffs just happens to be the most dramatic and interesting of those. Now I'm no geologist, so if you wish to learn a bit more you can click the link and you'll find an interesting explanation of these formations.

There's a reason I've posted two pictures of the exact same location, above. That reason is in fact captured in the title of today's post. The first of the two pictures was taken today. You can see how far out the ice extends from the shore. Actually, it has broken up quite a bit this week. It's very dynamic. Last week, when I posted Ice volcanoes, it extended very much further. Anyway, that second picture...that was the same spot last year. Now I won't lie. That was December of last year. But I assure you, that was how mild all of last winter was. Frankly, due to last winter's mild conditions I never really got the opportunity to fully appreciate just how much fun my fatbike is on packed trail.
Which is a perfect lead-in to my last photo for today. Somehow...I don't really think the idea of some jackass who doesn't know any better than to pedal a bike around in the middle of winter was what those who posted this sign had in mind. Do you?