Playing Outside Instead of Packing

On Saturday, I visited Treman State Park for my last Finger Lakes hike for a long time.  The weather was pleasant, for winter, with temperatures around 25F (-4C) and no wind.  The sun even peeked through the clouds at one point!

 Rare winter sunlight through the hemlocks

There was several inches of snow on the ground; I was happy I had brought microspikes, since I'm very cautious and slooooow on unstable footing.  Kate, Tim, and I covered the 4.5 mile loop in ~2 hours by going up the Rim Trail and down the Gorge Trail.

Lucifer Falls, in all of its 115 foot frozen glory

It was appropriate to return to Treman for my last hike in the region, as my very first experience hiking in the area was a snowy, icy day trip through Treman State Park in the winter of 2001-2002.  Funny how things tend to come full circle...

On Sunday, I went ice climbing at Lick Brook, thanks to Cornell Outdoor Education's staff ice climbing clinic.  It was a great time.

Action shot...  with a rather crunched up posture.

I would love to become proficient in ice climbing in order to climb outdoors year-round (or I could move to a warmer climate...  nahh...).