HUBBARD, IOWA - Winter is still a great time to enjoy the outdoors in Iowa, even though temperatures can be quite miserable and many of the warm-weather activities take a pause until the snow disappears. Activities like snowshoeing, cross country skiing, and hiking are a great way to get outside and keep moving. The past couple of weeks have brought some relatively light snowfall to the area and has made for some perfect conditions for these types of activities. While on some of my recent hikes, I've encountered several bald eagles, a nice buck deer, a barred owl and even a flock of robins that apparently decided to stay here and feed on the fruit of some fruit-bearing trees instead of migrating south. The woods take on a much different ambiance in the winter time, and because the leaves have dropped there's much greater visibility to see wildlife and other features than you might see during other times of the year. Plus no need to fight the mosquitos or other critters you might normally encounter on a hike!
