Well, it’s pretty damn cold over here in Washington DC - there’s been a few snow days, and if it gets as warm as 10oC I get excited. So far I’ve checked out the snow in West Virginia (it’s kind of like Tasmania out that way, lots of wilderness, lots of conservationist hippies, and lots of conservative rednecks). There was one weekend of snow camping and skiing average cover at a cross country resort, and another weekend of skiing on 30+ inches of fresh powder at a downhill resort, with condos and hot tubs. On the weekend I also tried out night skiing at Whitetail in Pennsylvania – on man-made snow and sheets of ice.
On the weekend, at the supercrag that is Great Falls, VA, I learnt how cold rock can really get. There was no snow on the ground, but as soon as you started a climb, the rock would just suck the heat from your hands. I had a hand warmer sachet in my chalkbag and was using the chalk bag in an attempt to regain some sensation in my fingers, rather than for chalk.
Coming plans – I’ll be checking out the bouldering in Governors Stables in Pennsylvania this weekend, and I’ve just booked a flight (only $98!) to Las Vegas for April, to go climbing at Red Rocks for a few days.
--Megan--
