Whipping Wind and Blowing Snow

Sounds like a great day to get out and xc ski at the base of Mt. Washington, right?

7 degrees and very windy with high gusts blowing the snow around the Great Glen lodge.

However, we had come up to ski, so ski we did. I was all excited to get two days of skiing in a row, so we bundled up and headed out. I hadn't been out on my skis in two weeks, and I think that combined with my rushing across the fields to escape the winds caused the ski got off to a bit of a rocky start for me. I couldn't get my hood up; I put my poles on wrong and got them tangled up, causing me to do a face plant as I attempted to fuss with them and continue forward simultaneously; then Snowman had to help me fix my poles a few minutes later. Ugh! I was all flustered. But eventually I got into a better groove, and despite the cold and wind, the skiing was great. Once we got across the fields and into the woods, the winds died down and we were able to enjoy the quiet trails (surprise, surprise, there weren't many other people out today!) and nice snow. And boy is there a lot of snow! It has been a great winter so far up here.

It turned into a nice hour-long ski, and I'm glad we braved the wind and cold to get out there. Plus, as we were stopped to fix my poles, I saw a downy woodpecker working away at the bark on one of the birch trees. Always nice to see a bit of wildlife out in the woods :-)