Embrace Your Inner Warmth

Record Breaking Cold in Boston- Yeah, it's a cold morning. My windshield washer anti freeze fluid is frozen. My GPS won't turn on until I warm up the car for a while. Signs on the highway read, "Extreme cold Saturday and Sunday. Plan ahead." I'm planning. The top of Mt Jackson is 4052 feet, temp -10 F mid day, 30 to 40 MPH gusts. I'm planning to reach the top. I'm not planning to stay there for more than 3 seconds. Any issues in the cold? Frozen Eyelashes- Tiny ice balls are forming on my eyelashes. It takes me awhile to figure out what I'm seeing and feeling on my face. Then I get a kick out of it! Frozen Hands- I can only take my hands out of my mittens for about 1 minute before they get seriously cold. I'm using massive down mittens, glove liners, and hand warmers. I have 3 extra sets of hand warmers just in case. If my hands get too cold it's dangerous because it becomes harder to adjust layers, hydrate, fuel up, and do the self care that's needed to stay warm and moving. Frozen Wind- Above treeline is intense! I can't face into the wind for more than a minute before I have to turn away. The tiniest gaps in my layers of face protection create slivers of numbness almost immediately. Below treeline the wind is mostly blocked, totally different. Disclaimer- My above treeline hike for Sunday with the AMC was canceled in honer of the record breaking cold and strong winds. So I hiked solo but I picked a quick, easy, 5 mile hike, mostly in trees, on a very popular trail, and I didn't start until mid day to hit the warmest time. Very sane if I do say so myself. I obeyed the highway signs. I planned ahead. Hiked, Mt Jackson, 5 miles, 4 hours, Temp 0 to -10, strong wind, sunny, solo.