Winter days in Sweden

I am back from my quick trip to Sweden and its wintery glory.  Due to pure weathery luck, I was there when it was cold (mostly minus 15 Celsius), very clear skies (blue in the day, starry at night), and with plenty of snow (white, white and blue at dusk and dawn). The 'blue hour' is so strong here, it is a real phenomenon. Just look at the photos! :) The high humidity led to lots of hoary frost ('rimfrost') on every tree, grass, and  surface. It was simply gorgeous.  This is how it looked like:


A Swedish winter road.  They put salt on the big roads and highways, but not on the smaller roads.


A plowed winter road.  Nearly everybody has dubbed tires, unless you live in a city.This is how blue it is, this photo is not photoshopped in any way.  Around 2.30-3 in the afternoon in January.  The sun is still up, but with long, long shadows, and it doesn't reach into the forest.


Hoary frost (rimfrost) on branches.


Snow, frost and open water at Ekeby wetlands, the largest artifically made wetlands in northern Europe.  It is a haven for birds and birdwatchers.


Do you see the fox?  He or she was sleeping on the ice, in the morning sun. This is also at Ekeby.


Ice on ice and water in ditch. You can see the area where the water is freezing on the surface...


These ice crystals on the ice were about 2-3 cm big (about an inch).


The ducks were freezing.


Frozen rose hips. These are edible and the Swedes make 'nyponsoppa' from them.


The Eskilstuna River was nearly frozen over. And the sun, even if bright, doesn't get very high over the horizon.  This was about 11.30 AM.