All of this is by way of asking that you share any good seasonal photos (be they winter or as we march through the year) by email just like Friends' chair Terry Harrison with Bumble above. 

All the while recognizing that when you have something really lovely that fits one of our 2023 photo contest categories you should be submitting them there. I'll wait until the end of the year to use them. I promise!

Hear that sound? That's the round of applause being extended to all of you wonderful people who weighed in last year with your vocal support of American Rescue Plan funding for the state parks and forests. As reported by Brian Whipkey, the former editor of the Somerset Daily American and current Pennsylvania Outdoors Columnist for the USAToday network (hometown boy makes good), a vast array of infrastructure improvements are now on the drawing board. This success is truly due to the letters and emails and calls you made to your elected officials to express how much the outdoors means to you and your communities. Thank you!

But (you knew there would be a "but," didn't you?) the work is not complete - not with over $1.4 billion of work that must be done! So - "never give up, never surrender." And should you be so inclined, check out the Needs List on our website to see some of the very specific projects for which we have been raising support. Perhaps you work for a business that might want to sponsor one of them. Perhaps you'll share the list with that business! 

I hope you checked in on the PPFF Book of Faces on Valentine's Day to read the love stories that were shared. Obviously, it's not too late. Your heart will be warmed!

This week's look ahead takes us to the first weekend in March. With spring just around the corner ...

Put a bookmark on the PPFF Events calendar and DCNR Calendar of Events so you never miss an announcement.

Why do rhododendron leaves curl up tightly when it's cold? It curls its leaves inward to reduce the leaf surface and preserve moisture. As the doctor always says, "hydrate, hydrate, hydrate."

This week? When did the Great Backyard Bird Count get its start and by whom was it begun?

Enter each week to increase your chances of a fabulous prize at the end of the month when I'll draw one entry from all correct answers received during the month.

By the way, I learned something new this week with regard to season-predicting groundhogs from Reader Kelly. Who knew that Lancaster County boasts four, count 'em, four of the little beggars.  Predictions?

• Octoraro Orphie: Early spring
• Poppy: Six more weeks of winter
• Mount Joy Minnie: Early spring
• M.T. Parker: Early spring

Pick your whistlepig prognosticator!

As ever, blue boxes are pictures and news; green boxes are events.

Quote by Robinson Jeffers
The Answer
The Collected Poems of Robinson Jeffers, 1989

Photo from Georgetta Frederick

In honor of Random Acts of Kindness Day (February 17)