shadows preserved in snow

Winter has a way of driving me a little crazy, as the shortened daylight and biting cold, force me to spend more and more time indoors.  The unseasonably warm weather we were experiencing here in the Grand Valley, came to a screeching halt, back around the beginning of the new year.  Replaced by sub-freezing temperatures, the warm air found its way up to the top of the Grand Mesa where it has been lingering for over a month now.  This phenomenon known as an “inversion” occurs when warm air hovers over cold, in violation of the typical atmospheric thermal gradient, where air temperature decreases with altitude.  Local wisdom states that this inversion can sometimes last the entire winter, until Chinook winds break the inversion layer and restore normal convective activity.  The persistent cold is ensuring that the few inches of snow that we received from a moderate storm back in December linger for the entire winter.

Yet, in spite of the wintry temperatures, the sun still shines, bating me to venture outside.  Expecting its bright rays to warm the blister of cold air to a tolerable chill, I ventured out for a midwinter’s bike ride along the eastern end of the Kokopelli trail.  Here are a few pictures from my ride.

January 7, 2011- Ouray Ice Festival

Climber on mixed route near the upper bridge.

Friday morning groaned to a start as we woke up in our apartment and hit the road for the 2011 Ouray Ice Festival.  We arrived in the wee hours of the afternoon just as the sun, hitting the mountain peaks to the south of Ouray, began to cast shadows down over the rims of Box Canyon.  But, things were in full swing.  Everywhere, people in brightly colored Gore-Tex strode about wearing their mountain boots and crampons carrying with them on their backs all of the latest fashions in light-weight backpacks and shiny new ice tools.  The ice-shrouded walls appeared to be under siege as clinics and gear demos were being held throughout the canyon.  Forgoing, the village of tents set up by vendors from around the nation, no doubt displaying all of the newest technology in mountain sport, we made our way up the canyon in hopes of finding a peace of ice to claim as our own.

Fortunately, having slept in, we arrived at the easiest climbing, in the furthest reaches of the groomed canyon as the clinics were beginning to pull their top-ropes.  We built our anchor and abseiled into the canyon as the minions of clinic attendees were dispersing.

Elizabeth, ice climbing before she turns 30.

As the cold began to settle in for the night Elizabeth and I made a few quick laps on our climb.  Elizabeth who had included ice climbing on her "Things to Do Before I Turn 30" bucket list dispatched of the difficulties with great ease.  Considering that it was her first time on ice and that I was unable to provide her with any useful instruction on the subtleties of bashing one's way up the frozen vertical water, she did quite well.

As the sun sank lower and the shade became darker we collected our things and hiked out of the canyon, amazed by how quickly the hordes of climbers had disbanded and left the park eerily deserted.  After a quick bite to eat at the Ouray Brewery (where the beer is good, but the food is fantastically overpriced) we finished the evening by soaking our cold bodies in the local hot springs.

January 3, 2011

Lunch Loops in the afternoon on this frigid January day.

Winter finally arrived last week and with it came the cold and snow in grand fashion.  Gone are the 50 degree days of December.  We're saying hello to sub-freezing daytime highs and subzero overnight lows.  At least the sun still shines in Colorado.  These cold temperatures should help the ice park in Ouray as the warm fall had been thwarting the ice groomers best efforts to bring all of the routes in to top shape for the ice fest, later this week

2011 is here!

Happy New Year Everyone!

Now that 2010 is behind us I figured it was high time for me to join the technological age that we live in.

Some exciting events to look forward to this week:

Thursday-  Habitat for Humanity build day
Friday- Ouray Ice Festival
Saturday- My Wife's Birthday

Stay tuned for updates.