Snake on ice

Though the ground is still snow-covered a foot deep or more in shady places, it's warm enough to bring some critters out of hibernation. Yesterday i came across a garter snake crawling over a little snowbank – very slowly, as you might imagine, and my arrival didn't speed him up. I lifted him with a stick and set him down in a dry, sunny spot and went on my way as he slowly unkinked his coils. I hope he found something to eat – not many bugs out yet! – or else found a good place to go back to sleep for awhile.