Gear- Columbia Omni heat baselayer, heat thermal top, wind stopper putter shell with hood, fleece jacket, fleece lined leggings and a skirt, snow gaiters, Altras, Kathoola micro spikes, two pairs of wool socks, baraclava, hat with ear warmers, wind stopper hood, base wind stopper gloves and snowboarding gloves on top of that.
Words can't describe how cold those 2+ hours were to cover 4 miles on Mt. Wire this morning. We started at 3 degrees which "felt like" -9. The higher up we ascended, the more frigid and unrelenting the biting wind became. Wind chills were excruciating and breaking trail was difficult. At midpoint I found Jennilyn curled up on the ground trying to get heat and shelter from the wind. Before I knew it, we were spooning and chatting our teeth together until the others caught up. It honestly helped. Every bit of moisture frost my face and my skin burned on my legs. I had moments where I feared losing fingers but hoped that was being too dramatic in my fears, and I totally was:) It's funny how much, in that moment, you feel like you're on Mount Everest when you're nowhere near that experience. LOL! Regardless, it was fun to be with others, Matt W, Scott and Jennilyn. All had to come help Scott get his 118 peaks for this year. My was it brutal, but I'm pretty sure every one of his acquaintances feel indebted to him for his mentorship on the trails. Happy New Year, off to jump into a huge pot of boiling water.
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