Monday, January 27, 2020

Stretching the Legs


What a weekend! I spent two incredible days outdoors, stretching the legs and drinking up the Rocky Mountain views. The winter wonderland around Canmore is incredibly beautiful right now, and with the thermometer reading above zero, it was impossible for me to stay inside.

Saturday, I chugged up Ha Ling, but only to the heavily snow loaded slope just above treeline. Call me a chicken-sh*t, but with the Kananaskis Valley avi forecast for the alpine sitting at 'considerable', along with the memory of the heartbreaking passing of a good friend in an avalanche last spring, I stopped and thought about summiting but decided to turn around. I've been to the top several times so I wasn't all that disappointed, plus I was hiking solo so I pushed myself and moved as quickly as my moderately out-of-shape carcass would allow. In the end, I logged close to 600m of elevation gain in about 3km, and was up and back down to the car in 2 hours and 20 minutes. For me that was a pretty good grind!



Can you say 'eye candy'!!



Sunday wasn't nearly as much of a leg burner, and it was way more social. A group of us strapped on the snowshoes and headed out into a secret valley that offered us a stellar day last winter. As expected, this visit was again lovely, but with much warmer temps and a bit less snow.








I was in shirt sleeves
most of the day!


#mountaintherapy  #goodforthesoul





Nobody believed that this all
fits into my 24L Osprey...

All in all, it was a spectacular, much-needed 48 hours in my happy place. *SIGH*  I heart the Rockies!

Cheers.




An amazing cloud formation on my drive home!




Wednesday, January 22, 2020

Welcome to Summer in Alberta!


Okay it's not really summer, not according to the calendar that is.... But, exactly one week after the bitter cold winter temps we suffered through, the thermometer rocketed upwards by a whopping 45 degrees C...

Monday January 20th

How does this happen?? Incredible. At any rate, I am not complaining, as it is nice to be able to go outside again without the risk of instant frostbite. Speaking of going outside, we checked out the Ice Castles in Edmonton a few days ago - what an awesome attraction! Over 25,000 tons of ice, formed in individual stalactites and fused together (only using water), has resulted in this amazing frozen creation. If you get a chance to visit it, I highly recommend it!



With the weather taking such a turn for the better, I am stoked about partaking in some outdoor activities this upcoming weekend. A day of winter hiking and a day of snowshoeing are on the agenda - woot!

Get out and enjoy it while it lasts people!

Cheers!





Wednesday, January 15, 2020

Welcome to Winter in Alberta!


The balmy temps and sunny skies had to end sometime.... I think we all knew it was coming, yet no matter how prepared a person is for our random Central Alberta winter weather, it still stabs you like a hockey stick to the teeth when it happens.

Up until late last week, outdoor activities were mighty enjoyable, including a bonfire at the ranch and some shredding on the pond.







The enjoyment was abruptly curtailed however, when Red Deer made it onto the top ten list of coldest places on the planet!


The show must go on, so we have learned to plug everything in, bundle ourselves up, and not bother complaining about it. Because another thing we all know, is how quickly things turn around....


I have never looked so forward to a Monday! LOL!

Stay warm everyone!

Cheers.



Wednesday, January 1, 2020

One One Twenty Twenty


I continue to be dumbfounded by the speed at which time goes by..... It seems like only yesterday that I was writing my first post of 2019, and now here I sit, on day one of not only another year, but another decade. Wow. How is this possible!?

The final weeks - of the decade - were filled with fun, including a milestone birthday celebration for a friend, a beer-tasting and brewery tour with colleagues, an afternoon of stained glass with the girls, and some awesome time spent in Canmore.


Happy 50th Char!
Welcome to the club!


Troubled Monk tour!



More stained glass creations.

Cool patterns in the ice.













It snowed a ton in Canmore!





The Simpsons came to Canmore!






Christmas was most excellent as well, as I got to see my parents and spend time with many other important peeps. My sister and her hubby are on the road in their cool moho (check them out on Instagram - @midlifeprevost), so I was the source of holiday entertainment for Mom and Dad this year. 🤪 While I was in Medicine Hat, I dragged my Mom out for several days of shopping - she was a good sport about it and let me help her with some minor home redecorating! She did not let me win at crib however.... LOL!

Lovely December weather!

The Parents

The Poochies





The classic Christmas combo.....
Elinor's shortbread and spiced rum!

My Dad's model train set....

....complete with a snowplow!



Meanwhile, back in Red Deer..... it was a beautiful day with the Cookes. Jennifer was in town from Calgary, and Nichole traveled out from Kelowna. We did miss the twins though - Lindsay and Kristen - as they are both on adventures on other continents!








New Year's Eve ended up being an uneventful night at home, and New Year's Day has been equally as quiet. A day of reflecting, feeling grateful, and doing housework......

I wish all the best to everyone in the upcoming year - may 2020 be your best year yet! 

Cheers!