I walked for 3 hours in the back yard! Arrowhead mountain is a steep hill. This is my second time up and this time of year it is a little difficult. Lots of ice and few routes up. Maybe 2-3 miles one way to Arrowhead.
A few other end of Dec random photos:
We went to the Evo climbing gym in Portland with Erica and Erin. Very fun! They had many walls and routes and also had a bouldering area.
The first climb we did was with an auto belay system. You go up and it automatically takes in the slack. When you get to the top, maybe 40 feet, you fall backward and the system catches and lowers you to the floor. Very scary to let go and fall back trusting the system! Gets the heart rate up! Most of the climbs were done with Erica or Erin handling the belay.
A great way to spend a rainy windy afternoon. Unfortunately snow is gone. Stowe says winds gusted to 130 at the top of the mountain.
Snow was similar to yesterday. Pretty good! Today had the added benefit of sun and also some snow crystal rainbows in the AM. Always good to get out while you can as the forecast, if correct, will mean no skiing for a while.
