Mt. Holyoke

Hello everyone,

Have you ever done winter hiking?  It's a completely different animal than just good old hiking, let me tell you. David and I didn't know this though, so off we went to Mt. Holyoke to escape the hustle and bustle of the city life, quite content with our rain/snow boots, and expecting to have a nice little jaunt in the mountains.

To be sure, it was incredibly beautiful.  The photos don't really do it justice, but something about the snow and the ice and the overall quiet mingled with a faint murmur of the brook created an ideal setting for two city dwellers looking to escape and recharge.

I've always found that I need more frequent contact with nature than perhaps some others.  And this is probably why my favorite city is Seattle. As you've seen, our backyard park is a giant forest haha. (don't worry, Boston, you are my second favorite  ;)  haha)  I'm not sure if David feels the need as much as I do, but he also enjoys being outdoors, so it works out for us.  I mean, deep down, I think everyone feels the rejuvenating effects of being out in nature...  don't you think? 

But going back to the whole winter hiking thing...  

It became increasingly clear as we started our climb that we didn't have the necessary equipments.  

Though neither of us actually fell..........  we got as close to that as humanly possible, multiple times.

and while we didn't see many others attempting the climb, everyone else who did had what looked like ski poles and really intense boots.  At one point, we saw this man coming down the now-very-steep trail leaning heavily on his poles and still slipping, and we decided to turn around.  He caught up to us a bit later, and showed us the gear he recommended.  He had on hiking boots, and on top of that, he had little metal claw looking things strapped to the shoes so that he wouldn't slip.  We were definitely VERY unprepared for this icy hike.  He said that he saw us turning around as he was coming down. We must have looked pretty pathetic to him  =p  haha   

Despite the unpreparedness on our part for the climb, we still thoroughly enjoyed ourselves just roaming around the mountain talking, enjoying the smells, catching each other from falling, taking photos, and laughing.

It was the perfect little half day getaway from the city, and I can't wait to go back and finish the hike once we have the equipment (or once the snow melts!)  =)

Thanks for stopping by, and have a wonderful rest of the day!
--Janny