Yesterday's activities in the general population reflected a mass psychosis of shopping frenzy in hopes of finding irresistible bargains during Boxing Day sales. Weather was truly atrocious; windy, icy-cold and freezing rain to top off the accumulation of snow we had covering all outdoor surfaces. But nothing deters dedicated shoppers and they were out in droves irrespective of driving conditions and warnings that it might be a good idea, under the prevailing circumstances to stay off area roads.

By the time we went off to sleep last night the temperature had begun falling, and icy precipitation turned to something more approximating ordinary rain. We've no idea how long it rained but when we arose in the morning it was no longer raining and the temperature was still down, just under freezing, and the great outdoors looked like one giant skating rink.

What had been lightly packed snow on lawns and heavily packed snow on roadways was now thick layers of brittle, shiny, slippery ice. Making for driving conditions as problematical as yesterday's.

We strapped cleats over our boots, wrapped Jackie and Jillie in little sweaters (for the cold), jackets (for the wind), their harnesses (for a gentler leash guidance) and made off to the ravine. Although the temperature was still just above zero by then, the humidity and the wind made it seem much colder. Walking up the street to access the ravine entrance was an exercise in ice-management underfoot, but the cleats do their job wonderfully well. The entire road was ice-covered and over the ice, melted ice.

In the ravine, the trails were hard-crusted snow and ice, though nothing like the road, and our progress was just fine, though there was a bit of a drag on bootsteps that sink into the crusted snow with each step.

The creek was in fairly full flow, with all the snow and ice that has melted over the last few days running into the forested waterway. It looks wider, and certainly muddier than it would ever appear under other conditions. We came across a few other trail hikers and their accompanying dog companions, so our two had a nice bit of a run with them.