A couple of weeks ago, I took a walk with Sebastian and Aaron along the stream. While wandering, we noticed some pretty big prints.

I did not have a ruler, so I used my hand to give a size comparison.

Duke, our 90 lb dog, was with us and his prints seemed small in comparison. (We also found some scat of a carnivore.)

I don’t know if this scat is related to the print or not. There were other samples that I wish I would have taken photos of — larger and fuzzy.

So what could it be? A coyote is too small….a wolf?…a mountain lion (Puma concolor schorgeri, also known as cougar)?

It was cold and the three of us didn’t need to find a mountain lion today.

Several weeks later, Chuck and I went on a print-tracking adventure — in search of the big cat.

According to a 2003 study done by UW-Steven’s Point’s Department of Natural Resources, “Despite the lack of direct evidence of cougar presence in Wisconsin, it is likely that they will soon appear in the state, and may already occur here.”

UWSP put together a study on cougar sightings between 1994 and 2003.

The red square around that green dot is where we live.

Notice the green square of probable sightings—our backyard. Now this is getting more exciting.

Chuck and I walked in the same area of the first track sighting. The weather has since rained, snow melted, wet snow frozen and more new snow. It has been several days since any fresh snow, so we knew the tracks wouldn’t be the best. But, we brought along our trusty guide, “Scat and Tracks of the Great Lakes,” and our protector, Duke. Also known as the dog who runs through all tracks so it is hard to identify them.

Stay tuned and I’ll show you what we saw.

These photos were taken over a week ago, but they still need to be enjoyed by all.

One of the most spectacular winter sites is Ice Fog. The consists of water droplets that have frozen into extremely tiny ice crystals. According to Wikipedia it requires temperatures at or below −35 °C (−30 °F), making it common only in and near the Arctic and Antarctic regions. Or in our case, Wisconsin.

Although I’ve seen it three times this winter, it rarely happens in our part of the country. But when it does, it is amazing.

I took this photo during the last ice fog, but I wanted you to see the crystals up close.

I leave for work when it is still dark out, but I knew when I walked outside to do chores that something special was in the air. I tired to get a few photos, but my camera is not that good at photos in the dark.

When Chuck woke up, he was greeted by this beautiful landscape.