Snow in the Butte

Jet lag has subsided, and i'm ready to write again. There is still tons of snow in Crested Butte, which is quite a shocker after the green summer-like conditions in Europe. I was not quite ready to be immersed in full winter again! Last Wednesday it was full down coat weather all day long. Snow line is about 1000 feet above town right now, but there are still snow banks around my neighborhood. It has been freezing hard at night, although less this week than last, so the skiing has been pretty good up high. It has gotten significantly warmer in the past few days, and was able to ride my mountain bike yesterday, although only a few short trails are open. Temps were about 65, and you could literally watch the trees bud from brown to a irridescent green in just one day. The riding at Hartman's Rocks in Gunnison is much more summer like, and the riding is super different - slickrock, sand and cactus.

I've been working on the computer a ton, organizing adventures for next season. I'm excited about a trip to Pakistan in the works - retracing an expedition by Fanny Bullock Workman from 1899. The area seems to be chock full of unskied peaks. I'm also hoping to tackle the Bernese Oberland Traverse in which i will research documentation of Global Warming and its impact on the ski industry.

My newly formed Himalayan Girls Ski Club is making some progress - i have obtained six pairs of Sweet Thang girls skis from Head, with boots and Binding for Dicky Dolma and the girls in India. They should ship this week. Next in line is getting some poles, hats, goggles, glasses, gloves and clothing. Please contact me if you are interested in helping. I have also contacted some folks in Pakistan to begin the same type of project.

I'm off to Iowa on Sunday to design ski socks for Fox River. We are working with a new yarn made out of corn fiber, an organic line, a kids line, and fun designs for women's ski and snowboard.