Enduring Winter at Trout Creek

                                                  

                                                    

Experiencing Trout Creek socked in by snow and fog is an experience that will leave one speechless.  From the beauty to the pain, these days of winter out at the crag are forever changing my perception.  The climbing is numbingly painful, yet we still keep returning, and somehow we still keep placing our hands in the refrigerator ice boxes that we know as cracks.  I still can't stop laughing hearing our friend Zach Horn state "this is stupid".  Hand warmers don't even feel warm on the coldest of these days.  

Some may ask why then, but we no longer question it; we just keep going out.  The temperatures are low and we humor ourselves feeding the illusion that the sun is about to break through the clouds.  We saw the sun for a short while yesterday.  It was glorious and for a few brief moments we remembered the warm days ahead.

  

Climbing always seems to push me further into myself and out of my old habituations.  I have found that even when I am miserable, suffering and fighting the urge to quit, there is always something to smile about and always time for play.  From snowballs to humiliation, isolation to the comfort of good friends, frozen ground to mudslide declines, good times are had and worth any pain that is inflicted en route.

Thank you Wally Fox for keeping the momentum going.

-Mel