Montana Jones

Learning the winter

I can hike up a storm in the warm months, the mountains and I are pretty tight. But I have never learned how to be in the wild during the winter. I broke the ice, so to speak, with new snowshoes last winter. This season I am putting them to more use. I am feeling something new on the trails, like I am out of place. Like I am vulnerable. Not a feeling I get on the hot days of summer. Not a feeling I enjoy.

I know how to cope with the trail in the summer. How much water to carry. What clothing works for both the heat of the day and layers well for cool evenings. How much food for how many miles of trail. What gear to carry just in case. I am at home and comfortable with the wilderness. In the winter I suddenly find myself a stranger again as ice crusts the streams and snow goblins climb the trees.

My biggest problem so far is with clothing. Learning what works and what doesn't. I understand layers and use them, but the wrong layers cause problems. If I trap too much heat I sweat and ultimately get wet and chills. If I don't trap enough heat I find myself in a race to keep moving and keep my body temp up. The middle ground is elusive.

The right gear to carry is different too. I learned the other week that my snowshoes can throw snow up the back of my legs and get my pants wet. Wet is bad and results in chills. Note to self: get some waterproof snow pants.

I am leery of the unforeseen too. When it is warm I am confident I could spend an unplanned night in the wild if an injury or other circumstance forced me to. In the cold I don't have the same confidence. I am reluctant to explore too far from the trailhead and safety.

So many things are different about this time of year. I feel like a novice again. Snow and ice are harder to walk on than dry ground. The trail is harder to identify. It even feels different to be thirsty. Add to that everything I don't know about avalanches and when ice is safe and my own limits and tolerance for hypothermia. I don't like feeling like a novice. Some days staying in like a hermit sounds better than feeling like this.

There are some wonderful things about the snow and cold. The still silence that makes breath and heartbeat ear shatteringly loud. How easy it becomes to see animal tracks. The way snow and frost paint old familiar landscapes into new, wonderful pieces of art. I think I have to keep going. To keep learning. To keep adding gear. What choice do I have really? Last winter I learned that being a hermit sucks.

Labels: cold, hiking, learning, novice, outdoors, snow, snowshoes, trail, wilderness, winter

Posted by: Montana Jones / 1:34 PM 2 comments

Sick

He:

You sound stuffy Jones, do you have allergies?

Me:

Not really, I just have this sore throat thing.

She:

You sound terrible, are you sick?

Me:

No, just a frog in my throat.

She:

That's no frog, that's a buffalo.

Him:

Are you alright Jones? You don't sound so good.

Me:

I just had a sore throat, I'm getting over it.

Her:

That cough sounds terrible. Are you sure you are okay?

Me:

Yeah, I had a throat thing that has gone down to my chest. I'm okay.

Guy:

Are you sure you should be here? You sound bad.

Me:

Yeah, I'm fine. Gimmie that tissue.

Girl:

Are you sick Jones?

Me:

Okay, I'm sick. Alright? I have a cold. Are you happy? It's not all that bad, it hasn't slowed me down. Can't I be in denial about anything around here?

They:

Here, have some tea with lemon. Take this vitamin C. Are you taking Echinacea? Summer colds suck. You should get some sleep. Would you like a bowl of soup? Don't breath on me. Do you think it's this heat? Drink some orange juice. Have you taken your vitamin C?

Labels: advice, cold, conversation, denial, ill, sick, sore throat, stuffy, vitamin C

Posted by: Montana Jones / 6:47 AM 0 comments

Winter

OM:

It was really cool driving through the heights the other day. The way the snow blows and drifts. They can't plow worth a damn when it gets like that, the snow just blows in again. It was just like it used to be when I was a kid.

Me:

Cool. I get the impression that this winter has been more like traditional Montana winters. Colder, snowier.

OM:

Yeah, pretty much. If it was just a little colder and had a little more snow this would be like winter used to be.

Labels: cold, conversation, drift, Montana, plow, snow, winter

Posted by: Montana Jones / 6:57 AM 0 comments