West of Sundre

lies a bunch of deep forested foothills on the backside of the Rocky Mountains. The 'ol dog and I (she's 5 months old lol) took a few day trek to unplug. When I say unplug- I really mean that I needed many consecutive uninterrupted hours to hammer out the backend of my impending 2026 'zine- [WLDRSE].


Safe to say I left the snowy mountaintops feeling inspired and ready to finish piecing together the vision from my 2025 travels.

A dark bay horse dusted with snow stands in a frost-covered field beside a wire fence in winter.

Alberta Mountain Horse (wildie), Feb 18, 2026. Sundre, AB Foothills.

A snow-dusted empty road lined with tall evergreen trees disappearing into a foggy winter landscape.
Snow falling gently through a dense forest of tall evergreen pine trees on a misty winter day.
White Ford Explorer ST SUV with amber headlights on a snowy winter forest road in overcast conditions.
Black Husky rolling tool chest with red latches and retractable handle on hardwood floor near door.
A dimly lit door with window blinds reveals a glowing lamp casting warm light in a dark blue room.
Flat screen TV displaying Schitt's Creek with subtitles, mounted on a dark wood entertainment stand in a dimly lit room.
Adobe Lightroom photo editing software displaying evergreen forest images on laptop screen.
Misty foggy mountain landscape with dense evergreen pine forest trees in grey overcast conditions.
Snowy winter wilderness landscape at dusk with frozen river, evergreen trees, and mountain backdrop.
Flat lay of a DJI Mini drone, compact camera, lenses, batteries, and accessories on a wooden surface.
Snow-covered river winding through winter forest with pine trees and misty mountain range behind.
A white Labrador puppy rests on a dog bed beside a colorful plaid deer-patterned quilt with toys nearby.
Two brown horses standing together near snow-covered evergreen tree in snowy winter woodland setting.

I wondered where I would see the Wildies post winter storm, and how they would be managing the -30C temps and fresh dump of snow. They seemed quite happy to be catching some sunbeams after a solid 2 days of unrelenting snow. Occasionally pawing for grass, ambling about the slopes, and a lot of 'relaxing' from stallions and young bachelor studs.

Herd of horses walking across a snow-covered hillside in a winter landscape.
A frost-covered dark brown horse standing in a snowy winter field.
Snow-covered field with dry golden grass patches visible through the white winter snow.
A dark bay horse standing among tall brown grass with snow-covered evergreen trees behind.
Young white Labrador Retriever puppy on leash standing in snow, looking alert in profile view.
Snow-dusted pine tree branches with pine cones in soft winter sunlight.
Dark room with small window revealing snowy evergreen forest outside through venetian blinds at night.
Yellow CAT motor grader clearing snow near snow-covered log cabin building with pine trees behind.
Snowy winter road reflected in a car side mirror with mountains and evergreen trees under a clear blue sky.
A lone brown horse standing on a snow-covered hillside in winter landscape.
Snowy winter forest landscape viewed through a vehicle window with bare trees and snow-covered hills.

Scattered piles of timber. Feb 19, 2026. West of sundre, AB.

Snow-covered forest path with fallen trees casting long shadows on a sunny winter day.
Large pile of cut logs and branches surrounded by snow-covered pine and birch trees in winter.

logging + industry work continues over winter.

Snow-covered open field with a tall communications tower and evergreen trees under a clear blue sky.
Snow-covered rural field with collapsed wooden fence remains and bare trees on the horizon.
Two horses, one brown and one black, standing in a snow-covered field in winter.

wildies sunbathing post snowstorm

Snow-covered hill with evergreen trees under a clear blue sky in a peaceful winter landscape.

herd on hillside. feb 18, 2026. west sundre foothills alberta.

Two horses grazing on a snowy hillside slope in a cold winter landscape.

stallion fully relaxing in the morning sunbeams. Feb 18, 2026. sundre foothills, alberta.

Cattle feeding on hay bales in a snow-covered field with forested hills in the background.
Drone flying over a frozen snow-covered field with forested hills under a clear blue sky.
Three oil pump jacks operating in a vast snow-covered field under a cloudy winter sky.
Two horses, one brown and one dark, standing together in a snowy winter landscape.