30 Dec - Rain

It was warm overnight and cloudy, so not much re-froze after yesterdays warmer day. Then rain came earlier than hoped and it has rained lightly all day, increasing into the afternoon for 11mm by 5pm, and counting. I'll let everyone know how high it rained when I go out and take a looking at the conditions. Today I was resting and cooking over the fireplace in a big heavy clay pot: slow cooked Italian chicken in our own home grown tomato sauce, inspired by a great home cooked meal I had in Canmore last month. Anyway, it appears to have rained all over Japan, all the way into Hokkaido, even in Niseko. Looking at the surface temperature map (modeled forecast, not measured temps) anything green or yellow is above freezing. Snow coming overnight and a return to winter tomorrow.

I also spent some time today fixing gear and detuning ski tips with a bastard file. Any heavy users of ski boots should keep in mind that although the very popular Scarpa Maestrale are affordable and review well, they fall apart after about 150 days of use. Pity, as they were good boots when new, really good. Now it just rolling repairs to structurally important components - worse than just buckles falling off.