Late December

2006-12-29 10:14:58.000 – Neil Lareau,  Observer

From the inside out.

Waking up this morning and looking out the window it would have been easy to think it was beautiful outside. The sunrise revealed fresh white rime covering not just the summit but the crest of every hill from here to Jay Peak, VT. Fresh snow had formed drifts and snow fields that had been absent since October and the mountains looked a bit more like they should for this time of year. But then, walking out the door I was confronted by a separate and harsher reality. It was four below zero, the wind was sustained at 70 mph, and the air was thick with blowing snow and ice. The wind chill factor was 40 below zero. My wool pants proved inadequate for cutting the wind, and the lack a face mask was a blatant miscalculation, the sort possible before your first cup of coffee. In each successive observation since my first the temperature has warmed a few degrees, yet the overall reality remains unchanged; it is harsh out there, it is Mount Washington in late December, don’t let the sun fool you.

Neil Lareau,  Observer