Ah, snow again. I can't really complain, though, We missed most of the crazy storms that have been going everywhere else in Alaska. The fire is being difficult today, a lot of that wood that looked good yesterday is actually rotten and doesn't want to burn well. Funny thing about Birch trees. Most trees die and don't rot until they actually hit the ground. Birch trees will actually stand and rot in place. They don't really dry well, if you can find a freshly dead one the wood is okay, but if they stand for a few months they are pretty much useless for firewood. The bark burns REALLY well, it's actually awesome tinder if you ever find yourself lost in a birch forrest and need to build a fire peel some of the bark and some old man's beard and you have a great source of flame for a few seconds if you add a spark to it. the dead wood itself, though? Useless. You might as well try burning wet cardboard. Ah well, we have another load of the good stuff down at the bottom of the hill, I'll retrieve that when Nick gets home from school. Talking about Old man's beard- That stuff makes incredible rope. Not really sure WHAT type of vegetation it is, but it grows all over the trees down in the marshy areas. Its thin and twisted, really bushy stuff. Well, it actually looks like an old man's beard, hence the name I suppose. Makes an awesome fire starter, like I said, but the strands are also really tough but compliant. I was showing Beenie how to make rope with it. Take a couple of rope strands and double them up, twist them together and you have some really great cordage. All the kids have been getting interested in winter survival lately. Consider the environment, I suppose. We've done a couple of night time snowshoeing trips, always keeping an eye out for ways to start a fire, best places for emergency shelters, etc. At this rate they are going to be better woodsmen than I will ever hope to be! One of our favorite pastimes is to watch Man VS. Wild. The kids love to watch the show and point out the mistakes he's making that are going to get him into trouble and make his crew have to rescue him before he gets hurt. They take particular pleasure in the Alaska episode. Ah well, familiarity, I suppose. One of these nights they want me to take them on an overnight survival snowshoeing trip. I probably will, although it's not going to happen until it stays in the 20s as opposed to the -20s. It's only fun until somebody gets frostbite.