It was -19C (-2F) with 5' of snow on the ground when I left for my morning walk. Perfect conditions for training! With only 10 days left until I leave for the trail I continue to work on my conditioning by spending a few hours each day walking with the pack on, climbing every hill that I can find. This photo was taken by my friend John as we were making our way up the Holt's Hill near my home. This hill is just under a mile long with an elevation gain of 700' and I've climbed it more times than I can remember while training for hiking trips. It's certainly nothing like what I'll face in the southern Appalachians or the White's in NH but it's the best I've got around here and much better than sitting on the couch eating bonbons. Each day I get to see something interesting going on in the neighbourhood. Yesterday the folks were digging out from another 20cm of snow so I had a chance to chat with a few people along the way. A retired teacher who lives nearby told me how she just loves winter, even shoveling. Her great disappointment was she hadn't been able to make a snowman yet as we aren't getting any wet snow. "It's too darn cold." It's a delight to see someone who gets such great pleasure out of weather that most folks dread. I hope I'll be out making snowmen when I'm 80 years old.
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