What a difference a weekend makes...

...when the temperature reaches 60 degrees during the winter. Friday we hiked in 18" deep snow and today many areas were snow-less and the deer were everywhere. Compare these photos today with those of just 3 days ago found here. Six of the several dozen deer we saw are in this photo...



Some areas still had a bit of snow, and a bunch were treacherously icy. I nearly fell at least a half-dozen times, but was happy to discover my balance-recovery reflexes and muscles were still operational. Below you see Ellen, Patti, and Dave working their way up one of the hills...

The warmth and 2 days of rain melted most of the snowfall, creating headaches for some of the residents near major waterways. The storms put Chicago over the old record for precipitation total for the year.