The Winter Solstice is here ! Things aren't as bad in Vermont as they can be in other parts of the world, where the sun barely makes an appearance during the short winter months and people go nuts without daylight. Still, it gets pretty cold and wintry and it is nice to know that you are headed (theoretically) for Spring.
Last night some friends of ours threw their first (annual) Solstice Party, which was a lot of fun. Part of the festivities included a nighttime snow shoe hike. Since they live across the street from our neighborhood ski resort, we started off straight up one of the runs to the top of the hill. About five minutes in I wished that I hadn't started the second beer a half an hour before, and another five minutes after that I began to regret having layered up for the Arctic cold (I should point out that the windchill was forecast to be 5 degrees F or -15 celsius). Rather than suffering hypothermia, the opposite was starting to be true and I was dying of the heat. Despite all of this, I managed to drag my ass up the remainder of the hike, briefly enjoy the pristine hilltop view, and then slither back down the hill.
As a demonstration of how bad this made me feel, I wasn't able to drink another beer for at least 30 minutes.
So, a lesson learned. Don't overdress, since it's just as bad as wearing too little. I guess I could have stopped to de-layer, but once you've got your groove on (and your teeth are gritted), there's just no stopping.
Nevertheless, a great thing to do on the solstice, and hopefully a winter tradition.
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