Winter

North Dakotans have a lot of fun in the winter months -- sledding, snowmobiling, skiing, and even more simple things like making snow angels. And we’re quite serious about the snow angels. Twice, North Dakotans held the record for most people making snow angels simultaneously.

We have had a few days this winter when the sundogs have been quite prominent in the morning and evening sky. Although not rainbows, the basic principles are similar. The scientific name for sundogs is parihelia (singular parahelion). They often appear during cold winter days when ice crystals are abundant in the atmosphere and the sun is low in the sky.

Picture a bright, brisk, sunshiny winter day with a fresh blanket of snow. Now picture a red fox in its winter best trotting across that landscape. A friend recently described that sight to me. His excitement was quite apparent.

A quiet calm seems to come over the landscape during the winter months. But there is more going on than one might think. Many of the birds from summer have gone south, of course, but several species are permanent residents. And mammals remain as well, but their activities may be rather inconspicuous, particularly those living under the snow and ice. Few hibernate.

Winter is often slow to depart the Great Plains. By the end of March, travel can still be an icy challenge. On this date in 1911, the Bismarck Tribune…

People often feel cooped up in winter, but the winter of 1880-81 was particularly challenging, with an abundance of snow. Going into the winter, people…

To err is to be human. One of the most common human mistakes is estimating time. We say we’ll be there in 20 minutes, but it actually takes twice as long.…

Every part of the country has its own types of natural disasters. In the south they get hurricanes, in the west earthquakes, and here in the north we get…

“Bright clear sky over a plain so wide that the rim of the heavens cut down on it around the entire horizon…. Bright, clear sky, to-day, to-morrow, and…

North Dakota and South Dakota have been rivals for a long, long time. Congress created Dakota Territory in 1861, and Yankton eventually wrestled with…