A tree for us

John and I drove to the foothills of Mt.Adams to get a Christmas tree from the Giffort Pinchot National Forest. For $5.00 you can get a permit at the Ranger station, then cut any type of tree up to 12 feet tall. The roads higher up were icy, the ground covered in snow. We did quite a bit of walking - the trees are wild and not all full and perfectly shaped. We saw large cat tracks in the snow, and tried to recall if it was the cougar or the black bear that you are supposed to avoid direct eye contact with if encountering them in the wild (It's the black bear, I verified). 
We found a nice tree, then stopped on the way home at the Station Cafe in Trout Lake and celebrated Finland's Independence Day with some huckleberry pie.