Another weekend and another warrior get-away: Lake Minnewaska (again). Didn’t have to go too far — Minnewaska is about two hours north of NYC, and at least there was snow.  Rock and Snow on Main Street in New Paltz provided the skis, boots and poles for I think $17, and you can pick up virtually anything you need there for this trip or any trip really.

The 17 degree weather added a little wrinkle, but as expected it was warm as long as we were moving. Or warm-like. But this was the first time this year we’d got out cross-country skiing so we really weren’t moving very fast.

And if we weren’t moving slow enough, I broke my pole sitting down for lunch — or slipping down for lunch. Wow, we were just maybe mile and 1/2 from trail head and was a little tricky getting back (for me) but manageable. Really we were headed from Minnewaska over to Lake Awosting via a loop (about 8 miles) — took Castle Point Carriageway there with the idea of coming back via the Upper Awosting Carriageway.

But one of the three of us bailed and headed back for the less steep trail off the parking area (without the cliffs). And there was a brief time while all three of us were separated, which is not a big issue on a sunny day on groomed trails, but generally want to avoid that. And the one of us ended up at the car without the key. Given the temperature in the teens, it basically meant that we would push forward just a bit and the bail ourselves sooner or later.

Well the broken pole nixed the later option and sometimes you gotta take what mother nature gives you; in this case a gentle push backwards. Which is what we did. This means another trip to the Lake to finish the started mini-trek.

On the gear front (other than the pole) all worked out pretty well. I went with Marmot insulated pants and shell/jacket. As a side note, I don’t think most Gore-Tex should be considered water “proof” maybe water “resistant” up to some point.

A little insulation here and there — polypro base later, wool undershirt from Patagonia, wool sweater from Woolrich, and the Marmot shell. Was fine. Hat + balaclava and couple pairs of gloves and was within the realm of warm-ish.

Looking forward to getting back.

Got out for a post-Christmas excursion with brother-in-law. And, of course, testing some gear for some eventual bigger trip (Greenland). All good. Great gear store there in New Paltz, Rock and Snow, def worth stopping through. Did the short loop around the lake — a little snow — was hoping for some x-cross country skiing but rain wiped that option off the map. For now. Rock and Snow rents ski’s — so just waiting for the snow.

iTopoMaps was ready if needed (wasn’t needed) downloaded Quad night before. Otter Defender Case also seemed fine in 30 degree weather, though having to take gloves off to motivate the iPhone will become a pain point in anything much colder.