Paula Porter, for the Gazette A collage showing many of the author's childhood Christmas trees.

Winter has arrived in the Copper Country bringing with it colder temperatures and, of course, the holiday season. Of course that means tons of snow. Thankfully, I grew up loving the snow. We were always playing in it, so snow makes me happy. Growing up, the arrival of Christmas meant we would go out looking for a tree … a real tree. As a child, being outside was really the norm and always a a great adventure.

Adventures in early December meant bundling up, and hiking back into the woods to look for our Christmas Tree. Regardless of the snow depth my family of “tree hunters” all went together to search for the best looking tree.

I found it easier to stay in the back of the line due to the fact that all the snow that would be “panked” down by everyone ahead of me. As a youngster, it made it much more doable for me to follow, rather than lead and seemingly disappear into snow drifts that were up to my eyes at times and completely overhead occasionally. It was pretty simple, I’d just step into each footprint ahead of me. Even better was getting a lift or a piggy back ride at times. Deep snow can be tough at times for a young child.

I was pretty young the first few times that I can recall our yearly tree-hunting expeditions, and they were kind of tough. But eventually, they grew on me especially after I got taller and stronger. Our family tree hunt was the unofficial start of the Christmas season.

The woods was a sight to behold — white fluffy snow everywhere you looked. It was magical. I felt like I could stand there all day and be mesmerized by the beauty. Snow literally covering every tree, every branch, throughout the woods. To me it seemed like heaven — Pure quiet deep in the trees.

We all took a moment to stand in unison and soak the beauty of it all in. Then it was back the task at hand, searching, going in circles looking high and low. Trying not to lose anyone — or get lost myself. The snow was so heavy and thick, you needed to brush off tree branches to really get a good look at what was underneath that white blanket. There were so many beautiful trees and so many different places to search. The stillness and the quiet while searching made our woods seem like another world — it really was breathtaking.

Taking time to search for a real tree was half the fun of the adventure as a child growing up in the Copper Country. Stomping through the woods in chest-deep snow … there was nothing better. Of course, it was essential to be dressed for the long hunt — hats, gloves, snow pants, warm boots, even a scarf if there was a cold bite to the air.

The prize tree we searched for would be tall, with an abundance of thick green branches, and a certain fullness to it. It had to have it all. There were so many beautiful trees to choose from. But, ultimately only one would be picked. We’d leave the others to continue to grow, possibly, to be the chosen tree in the future.

Once the perfect tree was found, the trick was getting it back home with it before the sun went down, (these were, after all, the shortest days of the year). The last rays of sunlight shining off of fresh snow, made it a bit easier to get home. Our long adventure finally coming to an end.

Once the tree was found, chosen, cut down — all the hard decisions done (along with the fun involved), it was then time to haul the prized tree back home. It was often a long while before we settled on the ultimate tree. Running around looking at the many trees took a while some years. It was definitely a process. Once the criteria was met we’d take out the saw would get down to business. We always used a good old hand saw. We also typically looked for a spruce. That was the gold standard.

Those first couple of years I would kind of hang on to the tree in an attempt to help carry it, versus actually hopping onto the tree for a short break. Essentially being carried myself. It was fun either way. Especially since I was super light at the time. It was nice to catch my breath and really soak in all the fun and adventure. The trip home was often long and tiring — but exciting too despite the cold.

Once home, we let the tree sit outside for a bit — to let the branches settle down and the snow fall off. After that brief period, we definitely had to get in the house as soon as possible. We’d wrap a bed sheet around the tree prior to squeezing it through the door to keep all the branches tucked together. It would slip in effortlessly. We’d take out our red metal tree stand and give it plenty of water. But all the effort was worth it.

The absolute best part of having a real Christmas tree is by far that fresh tree smell. That is the epitome of what makes real trees the best. Each tree varied slightly from year to year, but each one was special. Keeping the tree watered every day is paramount. Some days the tree can really drink up the water. It keeps the tree healthy for the whole season, and the needles stay on the branches longer. Once the tree was up and watered. We would typically let it dry in the stand over night before the fun part could start.

The very next day we would decorate the tree. That was always incredible fun. It took some time, due to it being so tall and full. Nothing was better than taking the decorations out of the box and placing on our fresh tree. Putting on the lights first, then certain favorite ornaments and Christmas balls or whatever was the plan for the year. It was the best of times. Of course, the last ornament was always the star on the very top.

Throughout the years our tree decorations consisted of homemade ornaments, garland, beads, painted ornaments, candy cane’s, plus many others. My favorite was always the multicolored lights on the tree. I grew up with drifting off to sleep occasionally on the couch to the glow of those wonderful lights. Christmas only comes once a year, and that made it even more special.

It was an important daily chore to give the tree a big brown pitcher full of warm water every single morning. Always making sure to check the tree had an ample fresh supply of water to soak up. It stayed thirsty for quite awhile. It was a big job to duck under the branches and slip underneath to fill the stand every time as needed. It would be a shock hours later sometimes finding the tree stand bone dry again after giving the morning pitcher. The tree would last longer if it had a constant supply of water.

Once our real tree was up and all decorated — it Christmas was not too far away. It was such fun to come back indoors from an afternoon of playing in the snow to our very own hand-picked Christmas Tree. Seeing it decorated and the lights on in the day or evening was such a sight. It created memories that last a lifetime.

Christmas is one of my favorite times of the year — especially in our beautiful snowy Copper Country.