Chilly Evening Walk

Mar 01, 2026

A field of large rounded snow mounds fills the foreground in front of a dense stand of stunted, snow-laden black spruce trees under a pale blue twilight sky. The snow surface has a lumpy, organic texture from vegetation buried beneath. Fairbanks, Alaska. — Snow bumps in the stunted spruce forest along the UAF trails | Prints and Wall Art

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The news made the struggle to stay focused at work pretty real yesterday. By about 1 pm, I had given up and decided I needed some exercise, so I put on my climbing shoes and spent some time on the wall. It was a good distraction, and I managed to climb pretty well despite being a bit sore from climbing the night before.

I headed home after climbing, intending to go to the gym and get on the treadmill for a little bit. As I drove past Ballaine Lake, the light on the trees was really pretty, so I changed my mind and decided to go for a walk on the trails. While eating a very late lunch at home, I checked the weather as I got dressed. It was -21°F (-29°C) and forecast to drop to about -40°F and °C in the evening. A little chilly for the last day of February.

This winter has been relentless. Every break from the cold has come with another snowstorm, and I've genuinely run out of places to put the snow in my driveway. The heating oil and electric bills have been a quiet background stress I'd rather not think about.

Screenshot of a Bluesky post from Rick Thoman (@alaskawx.bsky.social), dated February 26, 2026 at 9:33am. The post reads: 'Fairbanks Airport low temperature Thursday morning of -46F (-43.3C) is the lowest temperature this late in the season since March 15, 1964, when the low was also -46F. #akwx #weather #Winter2026.' Below the text is a screenshot of a NOAA weather observation table for Fairbanks International Airport showing temperature readings from February 25-26, 2026, with -46F highlighted in the data. — Bluesky (@alaskawx.bsky.social) post from Rick Thoman about the cold temps earlier this week.

A blue car is almost completely buried under a thick layer of fresh snow in a driveway surrounded by snow-covered spruce trees. Only the lower door panels, a sliver of windshield, and the license plate are visible beneath the heavy accumulation. Fairbanks, Alaska, February 2026. — My driveway before shoveling after the latest snowstorm

I got to the trail about 40 minutes before sunset, but the Sun was already sitting on the horizon. The warm light on the trees on the north side of Ballaine Lake was already fading fast.

A frozen lake or pond in the foreground reflects soft blue twilight while warm golden late-afternoon sunlight illuminates the upper branches of tall snow-covered white spruce trees on the far shore. Bare shrub branches frame the lower left corner. Fairbanks, Alaska. — Light on the trees over Ballaine Lake | Prints and Wall Art

After the most recent heavy snow, the temperatures dropped quickly, preceded by very strong winds. It made for a mixed bag on the snow-covered trees. Only a few spots were wind-sheltered enough that the trees still had heavy snow; most of the spruce were pretty wind-scoured.

Looking into a dense boreal forest of snow-covered black and white spruce trees, with warm golden light glowing through the middle distance between the trees. Snow-laden branches frame both sides of the frame. Fairbanks, Alaska. — Shade is taking over the trees | Prints and Wall Art

A narrow snow-covered trail leads toward a brilliant golden sunset visible through a tunnel of tall snow-laden spruce trees. The warm sun sits just above the horizon, silhouetting the trees against a pale sky. Deep blue shadows fill the foreground trail. Fairbanks, Alaska. — Last glimpse of the Sun | Prints and Wall Art

"A boreal forest of tall, slender black spruce trees stands against a pale blue twilight sky. The upper branches of several trees on the right catch the last warm golden light of sunset while the rest of the scene is in cool blue shadow. Large rounded snow mounds and small buried shrubs fill the foreground. Fairbanks, Alaska. — Last of the sunlight glancing the treetops | Prints and Wall Art

The Sun set, and I continued wandering the trails, eventually settling in for a view at a small pond. Postholing out in stomach-deep snow before just… stopping in an automatic reclined position.

A bare, snow-covered dead tree leans dramatically to the right against a deep blue twilight sky, its twisted branches reaching upward. A flat snow-covered pond or clearing stretches across the foreground, with a dense line of silhouetted black spruce trees in the background. A faint orange glow lingers on the horizon. Fairbanks, Alaska. — The view from my “recliner” | Prints and Wall Art

Twilight set in soon after sunset. The moon is in a waxing gibbous phase, nearly full, and it was gorgeous hanging above the trees. Wandering around slowly for well over an hour after sunset, I eventually made my way back to the lake, where I had parked.

Looking up at tall, slender black spruce trees against a pale blue sky. A heavily snow-laden branch from a bent tree forms a thick horizontal arch across the lower middle of the frame. Fairbanks, Alaska. — Tall spruce with some heavy snow remaining on a lower bent tree | Prints and Wall Art

A spruce tree trunk bent nearly horizontal under the weight of an enormous rounded mass of accumulated snow, forming a dramatic arch. Snow-covered branches hang beneath the trunk. Dense boreal forest fills the background. Fairbanks, Alaska. — Snoodle on a downed spruce tree | Prints and Wall Art

A nearly full moon hangs in a soft purple-blue twilight sky above a sparse stand of snow-covered black spruce trees. Large rounded snow mounds fill the foreground. Fairbanks, Alaska. — The moon hangs over the forest. I love the soft purple gradient in the sky | Prints and Wall Art

A single black spruce tree carries an enormous rounded cap of snow on its crown, nearly as large as the tree itself, giving it a surreal mushroom-like silhouette against a pale blue twilight sky. Snow-covered trees and mounds fill the background. Fairbanks, Alaska. — Weighty snow on the top of a black spruce | Prints and Wall Art

A nearly full moon appears to balance precisely on the tip of a tall slender black spruce tree against a deep blue night sky. A large snow-capped shrub or small tree looms in the right foreground. Fairbanks, Alaska. — Moon over spruce | Prints and Wall Art

Back at the lake, the gradient in the sky was very similar to a photo I took of the lake in summer, which is one of my most popular photos. I wanted to do my best to recreate it, but I didn’t remember exactly where I had taken the photo from, so I made a guess. Turned out pretty close, but not exact.

A wide frozen lake or pond stretches across the foreground under a deep blue twilight sky. A thin band of warm orange and peach light glows along the horizon behind the silhouetted treeline of black spruce. Ballaine Lake, Fairbanks, Alaska. — Snow bumps on the lake with silhouetted trees in the background | Prints and Wall Art

A perfectly still lake reflects a gradient twilight sky ranging from deep blue at the top to soft peach and orange near the horizon. Black spruce trees are silhouetted along the far shore, their reflections mirrored symmetrically in the calm water. Ballaine Lake, Fairbanks, Alaska. — Silhouetted reflection on Ballaine Lake from summer, 12 years ago | Prints and Wall Art

In hindsight, I could have just looked up the photo on the spot; it’s not like I was miles out in the wilderness without service. But, oh well, maybe next time I’ll try to match the location and framing a little better. It’s close enough.

I started the car and let it warm up a bit, even though I live less than a mile away. It was kind of fun watching the frost build-up on my eyelashes slowly melt away. And, the walk did its job, as the reality of the day kind of melted away for a couple of hours, at least.

A selfie taken inside a car at night. A man wearing a blue knit hat and orange jacket has heavy frost coating his eyelashes, eyebrows, beard stubble, and fleece neck gaiter. His cheeks are flushed red from the cold. Snow-covered trees are faintly visible through the car window behind him. Fairbanks, Alaska. — I was pretty frosty after returning to the car

Screenshot of the National Weather Service forecast page for Fairbanks, Alaska dated February 28, 2026. Current conditions at Fort Wainwright show -35°F (-37°C), calm winds, and 67% humidity. The extended forecast shows lows of -42°F tonight and -36°F Sunday night, with highs of -14°F Sunday and -6°F Monday. An Air Quality Alert is listed under Hazardous Weather Conditions. — Check on current temps once I got home, about 15°F colder than when I started.

Field notes from the north

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