HAPPY NEW YEAR’s from the Atherton/Tolhurst/Hystad clan! What a great week we had bringing in the 2014 New Year! Ice fishing, snowmobiling, cross country, snow shoeing, camp fires and bon fires! It all happens at the Ranch!

Even Rum made it up to the Ranch! Here she is all decked up and ready to take on the winter. Though she loved being outside in the fresh air, she enjoyed the comfort and warmth of the cabin!

Diego was also ready for the snow and cold weather. He loved running through the fresh and had a blast out on the ice. It was awesome that Ruth Lake received 14 inches of fresh the night before we arrived and temperatures were balmy, just below freezing!

The fishing started out slow the first couple of days but the team perservered and on day three we were rewarded with 6 nice rainbows!

Special thanks to Silver Tip who supplied the snowmobiles to take us to our favorite spot on the lake for ice fishing. The warm conditions on day one and two proved to be ideal for building an ice rink. The ice on the lake was about 12 inches thick and the warm weather and snowfall had produced a three inch layer of slush on top of the ice. The boys worked diligently, pushing off the snow and slush and on day three the -8 weather made it perfect for skating.

From ice fishing to snowmobiling to ice skating, it was on to nordic skiing! What a blast we had breaking trail through the 3 feet plus of snow depth. Special thanks to the official supplier of Warm Springs Ranch, Rossignol, who have provided all the gear for Ranch guests!

What a way to welcome the New Year with a campfire right outside the cabin!

And the finale bonfire on New Year’s Day to wrap up our trip! This was a gigantic pile of tree stumps near our building site.

ALL the very BEST in 2014!   CHEERS!!!!