Preparation for climbing a winter high peak begins long before reaching the trailhead! We see our guests as teammates, and each of us should be well-versed on what to expect out in the mountains. It gives our team a higher chance for a successful summit! Thanks for being a great teammate, Julie! 🙌

Person standing in snowy mountain landscape wearing a red jacket and pink hat surrounded by snow-covered trees and blue skies. Text: Julie Mercier, 0 reviews 0 photos, 5 stars 10 hours ago. Jarrod is an excellent guide. Even before the hike he gave me valuable advice on the necessary equipment and the route. He regularly updated me on the weather forecast. On the day of the hike he handled the navigation and was very proactive. He is also very patient. I highly recommend him.

Incredible ski day! ⛷️ I had the pleasure of joining @jmhaas73 and team for very productive ski guide training on the Angel Slides, and then @highpeaksskiup for a true gem of a Nordic ski back on the home turf. The snow was so good!!

Two skiers descend a snowy slope surrounded by snow-covered trees on a mountain. Snow is falling lightly adding to the wintery atmosphere. Snow-covered landscape features a mountain behind a forest of tall evergreen trees under a partly cloudy blue sky with sunlight casting shadows on the snow. Skiers ascend a snowy mountain trail surrounded by snow-covered trees and distant hills under an overcast sky. Three skiers standing and talking on a snowy mountain slope surrounded by trees. Each skier is equipped with poles and wearing winter gear in a cold, forested area. A person wears winter clothing and skis downhill through snow-covered pine trees under cloudy skies, using poles for balance amidst a snowy forest landscape. Skier wearing snow gear smiles in a snowy mountain landscape with pine trees while holding trekking poles and electronic devices labeled Rocky Talkie and Garmin surrounded by falling snowflakes. A person with a blue backpack and ski poles stands in deep snow facing a snowy forested mountain slope surrounded by snow-covered trees and overcast sky. Two people skiing at night on a snowy trail with snow falling and illuminated by headlamps, creating visible light beams in the dark environment.

A wild day up in the High Peaks! Todd nabbed his 38th and 39th winter summits on Gothics and Saddleback. You really can’t overstate how different those two peaks are. Gothics was steep, exposed, and mega windy — almost blew out packs off the mountain! We opted for a roped descent through the steepest and iciest bit. Saddleback was a cakewalk with consistent slope and powdery snow by comparison! But Todd did awesome. Every ascent is unique!

Wooden trail sign indicates hiking directions in a snowy forest with text Follow Markers Trail To Miles Alternate Range Trail use during high water Keene Valley 5.2 NYSDEC Range Trail Gothic Mtn ascent 2278 3.2 Saddleback Mtn ascent 2070 6.1 NYSDEC A person wearing a red jacket and snowshoes walks through deep snow using poles surrounded by snow-covered trees in a winter forest setting. A person wearing a red jacket uses walking poles while snowshoeing uphill in a snowy mountain landscape surrounded by pine trees and distant peaks under a cloudy sky. A person climbing snowy terrain wearing snowshoes and carrying an ice axe in a mountainous landscape with snow-covered trees under a cloudy blue sky. A person stands triumphantly holding ski poles on a snow-covered peak. Small snow-laden trees surround them, with a cloudy sky overhead. A person stands in deep snow adjusting climbing gear amidst snow-covered trees sunlight filtering through branches climbing equipment and backpack nearby. A climber wearing winter gear sits on a snowy mountain slope secured with a rope surrounded by a vast landscape of snow-covered trees and hills in the distance. Two people stand on a snowy mountain peak. One holds a sign reading Saddleback 4515 ft 39/46. Both wear winter gear, smiling in front of a cloudy, snow-covered landscape.

Neurosis (WI4-) with Shane today. What a route! P1 was thin and hollow for the first third, but got progressively better. P2 & P3 were generally fat and happy. P4 was steep and hard. So good!

A climber holds an ice axe standing on snow with rope equipment while wearing a red jacket and green helmet surrounded by a snow-covered rocky cliff background. Climber ascending an icy rock face secured with ropes surrounded by snow-dusted rocky terrain and sparse trees under a cloudy sky. A climber in a red jacket ascends a frozen waterfall using ice axes and crampons surrounded by a snowy mountainous landscape with leafless trees above. Climber ascends icy cliff using ropes dressed in red jacket and green helmet surrounded by snow-covered rocks and barren trees in a winter landscape. Icicles hang from a rocky cliff forming a frozen waterfall surrounded by snow-covered rocks and leafless trees under an overcast sky. A person climbs a frozen waterfall, using climbing gear and ropes, surrounded by rocky cliffs and leafless trees under a cloudy sky. A climber ascends an icy rock face using ropes surrounded by snow and ice-covered boulders in a wintry landscape of leafless trees and overcast sky. A climber ascends a steep, ice-covered slope using ice axes wearing a red jacket and helmet surrounded by snow and sparse, leafless branches.

Riley Testut is prototyping some incredible animated lock/home screen wallpapers. I really hope this becomes more than just a hidden feature!

Nick Heer: ‘A Lament for Aperture, the App We’ll Never Get Over Losing’

Times change, though, and it seems like Apple has lost the soul of what made Aperture excellent. It should really figure out what that is. Questionable user interfaces, mediocre icon design, tolerance for lagginess and bugs — these are all bad things, but they are symptoms of a greater loss.

Another fine day spent in the mountains assisting someone on their winter 46er journey. Today, Julie and I tackled Seward Mountain after we turned around on it last week. This time, we enjoyed bluebird skies, bright sun, fresh snow, and single-digit temps In other words, a winter wonderland! We got it done in under 11 hours, and thoroughly enjoyed every minute, including pushing through all those thick branches and deep snow up top! 😁

Some shots from @adkclimb.club at Pitchoff Quarry last night. This little community is the best and brings out so much stoke! Groups made the treks from Plattsburgh and Burlington VT 🤯 and we were out sending till 11pm. 🤞 We’ll be closer to home at Poke-O next week for them.

Climber ascends an icy rock face using ropes during nighttime. Other people stand below on the snow-covered ground surrounded by trees and illuminated by artificial lights. Climber ascends large ice wall with ropes during nighttime. Darkness looms overhead and a tree branch is visible at the top against the night sky. A climber wearing a blue helmet ascends an icy wall using ice axes. The scene is illuminated by headlamps, with ropes securing the climber in a dark, enclosed environment. Climber wearing a helmet ascends icy surface with ice axes at night illuminated by headlamp surrounded by darkness and snowy terrain. Ropes secured to the ice for safety. Climber scaling a frozen waterfall illuminated by a flashlight in a dark night setting with bare tree branches overhead. The ice forms a jagged and textured surface. Climbers are belaying and preparing to climb a large icy wall at night. They wear helmets and winter gear, while one person holds a flashlight amidst snow-covered ground.

Three Flows gifted us many pitches of hero ice yesterday! @9_9_mph and I managed to climb all three main lines. Come with me on lead up the right WI4 flow!

Enjoyed one of my best days of ice climbing yesterday, with great fun and proud leads at Buster, Three Flows, and Pitchoff Quarry. This sport rules.

A person wearing a green helmet and red jacket smiles during an ice climbing activity on a snowy landscape with trees in the background. Another climber is visible in the distance.

Tom couldn’t stay out of the high peaks for long! Though he completed his 46ers in November, he returned for a second chance at the Phelps’ summit view. We managed only to see the inside of (moody) clouds again, but still had a great time catching up and getting him acquainted with snowshoe travel. 😁

Today was a standout day for ice climbing—thanks so much to Ryan for being game! We linked up Crystal Ice Tower with White Line Fever, which went from mega fat to mega thin. Rock gear saved the day on P3! Then headed to Tahawas for three more pitches of glory high above Chapel Pond.

A climber ascends a large icy cliff using a rope against a backdrop of trees and a cloudy sky. Text reads Crystal Ice Tower WI4. A person in blue gear ice climbing up a frozen waterfall with a rope, surrounded by snow-covered ground and dense forest trees in a winter landscape. Climber ascends an icy rock face using ropes amidst snowy conditions and surrounding trees. Text reads P1 of White Line Fever WI3. Climber in a red jacket and helmet ascends a snowy cliff using a rope surrounded by snow-covered trees and a mountainous landscape. Rope is stretched across an icy slope, connecting to a climber below, surrounded by snow-covered trees. Text reads: P2 of White Line Fever WI3. Climber ascends icy slope using ice axes surrounded by snowy woods and ropes while wearing winter gear and helmet. A person in a green helmet and red jacket smiles while ice climbing with a partner. Snow-covered trees surround them. Text reads P1 of Tahawas (WI3). A climber ascends an icy slope using ice tools beneath tall trees. Text reads P2 of Tahawas WI3. Ice climbing equipment secured on an icy slope amidst a snowy forest landscape The caption reads P2/3 of Tahawas WI3 Two people wearing helmets and outdoor gear are smiling and giving thumbs up in a snowy wooded area standing near climbing ropes and equipment.

Another stellar, speedy day in the mountains. Big Slide took big energy on the way up, was big beautiful, and big fun and fast on the way down. Car to car in about 5 hours.

A big day guiding in the mountains helping Todd attain his 34th-36th winter high peaks. We had all 13 miles of the trail to ourselves, adding to the backcountry experience. These peaks never come easy, but they’re always worthwhile! Back at it tomorrow for no. 37…

Another stellar day climbing frozen water with clients and friends. This time in the sun for the first day this season! ☀️ Pitchoff Left was chandeliered but pretty good, getting mushy by midafternoon. Hot Shot and Ice Slot in the Canyon were wet and wonderful. Today marked 50 pitches this season for me. 🙌

And check out that wild fog flowing over Chapel Pond! 🤯

A climber wearing a helmet and holding ice axes ascends a frozen waterfall with ice-covered surroundings. A climber ascends an icy waterfall using ropes amidst a snowy forest landscape surrounded by trees and rugged terrain. A snow-covered valley with mist swirling above is flanked by dark, forested hills under a partly cloudy sky in a serene, wintry landscape. Snow-covered ground stretches between dark pine trees and steep hills under a blue sky with clouds creating a tranquil winter landscape.

Mega fun day on Roaring Brook Falls with @kam827 and then extra laps in the Canyon on Lions and Rule of the Bone for @adkclimb.club. Gettin’ it in while the gettin’s good!

Climber ascends an icy waterfall amidst snowy, rocky terrain, as another person wearing a red helmet watches from below, surrounded by trees dusted with snow. A green rope ascends a snow-covered, icy rock face surrounded by snowy cliffs and evergreen trees in a mountainous landscape. A person with a green helmet smiles wearing a red jacket in a snowy forested mountain landscape under a cloudy sky. Climber ascends an icy slope using a rope snowy rocks and evergreen trees surround the frozen landscape creating a rugged winter setting. A person in a red jacket climbs a steep ice-covered slope, secured with a rope, while another individual in a red helmet watches from below in a snowy mountainous environment. A green climbing rope stretches upwards on a snow-covered icy cliff surrounded by trees in a mountainous landscape. A person wearing a green helmet and red jacket smiles while standing in a snowy forest with tree-covered mountains visible in the background under a cloudy sky. A climber ascends a snow-covered ice wall using ropes. Surrounding the climber are rugged, icy surfaces and snow-laden trees, suggesting a challenging winter landscape. A person climbs a snow-covered icy slope in a mountainous forest area surrounded by trees under a cloudy sky. A climber wearing a helmet and gloves holds a coiled rope in a snowy mountain landscape with a yellow backpack and ice axe nearby beside snow-covered trees and distant mountains. Icicles hang from a frozen waterfall cascading down a rocky cliff surrounded by sparse trees and a cloudy sky above. A climber ascends a narrow icy crevasse using a green rope in a snow-covered mountainous environment wearing a helmet and carrying a backpack amidst heavy snow and ice formations. Climber wearing a helmet ascends a snowy ice wall using ice axes and a green rope in a mountainous forested area visible below. Two people wearing helmets and winter gear are outside in a snowy forest. One person holds climbing tools and flashes a peace sign while both smile at the camera.

Weeping Winds with @bbrianandersonn today! Burlier than expected, but so much fun!

‘iOS 26 CarPlay confusing UI/UX - Apple Community’

In iOS 26, Apple CarPlay Maps, the currently focused button is grey, while other buttons (not focused/hovered/selected) are blue. Read this again: it is grey for active, blue for inactive.

Every time I try to select a route, I end up missing the right button.

It’s truly infuriating.

(Via Dr. Drang, whose post exposes other diabolical interaction designs.)

Sometimes, I just like looking at the big numbers. 😆 I didn’t quite make the length of the Appalachian Trail, but working out every ~2/3 days and for almost 1000 hours feels good! And the biggest effort day totally tracks with my memory of hiking the Santanoni Range on Jan 24. 😅

A summary from the “Athlytic App” titled “2025 Year in Review” against a purple and blue gradient background. It displays the following statistics: active for 204 days, with 263 workouts, totaling 915 hours and 57 minutes of active time. Calories burned are 234,486, covering 1767.3 miles. The most loved activity is hiking with 85 sessions, averaging 208 minutes each. Top effort was a score of 10.00 for hiking on January 24th.

So glad this last-minute booking came together! Helping expand @maxwellmortillaro and @phil_dworzanski’s backcountry ski touring repertoire was a total joy! And we saw some real progress as they mastered heading up and down the steep and tight terrain.

We made our way up Wright Peak from the Loj via the Old Marcy Dam trail and Wright Ski Trail. The rocky hiking trail and bottom section of the ski trail made for some exciting dodge, duck, dip, dive and dodging. But mega fun up top! Great temps too — way nicer on Wright than yesterday! 😁

#MykeWasRight Athlytic is awesome. Thanks @imyke@myke.social!

A smartphone displays a health app showing trends and graphs related to recovery and exertion.

Don’t let the fun music fool you, Wright, Algonquin and Iroquois Peaks were butt-kickers yesterday! Huge gusts, -30°F wind chill, and major drifting made us really earn those summits. Make sure you’ve got good traction — lots o’ ice on those rocky peaks! But Todd crushed it, as usual.

All the kudos go to Hao and Junlin for taking on the challenge of spending two winter nights backcountry camping in the High Peaks for their first experience in the Adirondacks. Even when the going got tough, their tenacity brought them success on their goal of climbing the Gothics cable route. Hard core! 💪

Two hikers climb a snowy mountain slope using trekking poles amidst a scenic view of snow-covered trees and distant mountains. Text reads Hao Jiang five stars an hour ago Jarrod is really professional and amazing We had a great experience.

Started reading: Margo’s Got Money Troubles by Rufi Thorpe 📚

It’s debuting as a show on Apple TV soon and it looks great!

Farewell 2025

Some personal highlights from the year!

Jan - Ski instructing at Whiteface Mountain and many uphill skinning adventures with early morning exercise buddies. 🎿

Four skiers ascend a snowy slope using poles surrounded by snow-covered trees during sunrise with a mountainous landscape in the background. Text reads January.

Feb - Saranac Lake’s Winter Carnival is always a blast and ice palace spectacular! This year we got to share it with my mother-in-law. ❄️

Three people in winter clothing are smiling in front of colorful illuminated ice structures at night. Text in the image reads February.

Mar - Multi-sport weekend with Mike — climbing in the Gunks and skiing at Whiteface. 🧗

Two people wearing helmets and outdoor gear are preparing climbing ropes on a rocky surface amidst a forest of leafless trees. Text at the bottom right reads March.

Apr - A trip down to Florida, with a visit to Bok Tower with Aunt Sally and Grandma Beck — a cherished memory as we would lose Grandma later in the year. ❤️

A person sitting in a wheelchair is surrounded by three people crouching and smiling in front of a pink flower display outdoors near a tiled roof building Text April

May - Backpacking with Jo and Phin. We hadn’t done one together in a while, and it was wonderful to hit the trail as a family again. 🏕️

A person roasts marshmallows over a campfire surrounded by stones in a wooded area while a dog lies on a mat nearby. Red camping gear is visible. Text May.

June - Rock climbing season kicked into high gear with many trips up the slab, including this memorable one with friends from @adkclimb.club in which Taka did a few barefoot pitches. 🤣

A climber wearing a bright green helmet holds a rope while sitting on a rocky surface with a forested backdrop. Another climber approaches in the distance. The text reads June.

July - Perhaps the highlight of the year, a trip to Wyoming to climb Gannett Peak for Matt’s 48th state high point and my personal tallest climb. The stunning cirque rekindled my desire for bigger objectives. 🏔️

A person stands on rocky terrain wearing a jacket and yellow pants smiling against a backdrop of snow-capped mountains and a partly cloudy sky. Text reads July.

Aug - Heartbreak as we said goodbye to our beloved Ollivander after 10 years in our little family. I can finally start looking back at photos of him with fondness instead of sadness. He was the greatest furry friend. ❤️‍🩹

A fluffy cat lies on a cat tree batting a hanging toy inside a home environment. Text reading August is at the bottom corner.

Sept - The month for love for us, as Jo and I celebrated the wedding of dear friends, Tyler and Lauren, and attended the balloon festival. And then celebrated our own (7th!) anniversary the next weekend. 💍

Two people smile at a hot air balloon festival. Various colorful balloons, including a penguin and owl, rise behind them. Many attendees gather on a grassy field. Text reads September.

Oct - Or Rocktober! The fall is my favorite time of year in the ADK, and I got to tick off a bunch of spectacular climbs among the beautiful fall foliage, including a few here on the Upper Washbowl with Brian. 🍁

A person wearing climbing gear and a green helmet stands smiling on a rocky ledge with a scenic view of a forested valley in autumn. Text: October

Nov - Snow and ice season arrived blessedly early and in full force! Got in some great pitches of climbing and backcountry skiing in deep snow before Thanksgiving — take that, west coast! 😉

A climber ascends an icy cliff face using ice axes and ropes surrounded by snow. The text November is written at the bottom.

Dec - I couldn’t choose between family time at the holidays and our current adventure with Dan and Sarah in Las Vegas for New Year’s, so I didn’t! Both have been wonderful. 🎉

Family gathering children and adults pose together smiling indoors. Another scene features a man in a glittery jacket with friends. A Christmas tree and decorative lighting are present. December is written.

I’m so lucky to live in a place I love, have a career sharing my favorite activities, and be surrounded by wonderful friends, family, and community.