Sharry Miller

Winter Dreaming

Winter has finally descended upon Valdez. Now, some might say it's been winter for months: only 5 1/2 hours of daylight, cold temperatures, howling winds. Winter in Valdez, however, is all about snow, and until recently we really haven't had any. Two years ago, weather.com declared Valdez to be the snow capitol of the U.S. Last year, we cemented that reputation by getting over 420 inches of snow, near record levels. This year, however, is... Read more →

Snowshoe Poling Experiment

Cre-e-ak. Cre-e-ak. My ski poles added overtones of haunted house to the crunch of my snowshoes. Tears trickled down my cheeks and my nose ran incessantly thanks to the 18 degree temperature. As the wind tried to instantly freeze the tears on my cheeks, I wondered if it would be possible to lose layers of skin when the frozen tears were scrubbed off. I made sure to wipe mine off with my mittens before that... Read more →

Snowshoe Season

I laughed out loud even as I ducked my head and squinted my eyes. Wind gusted up suddenly, flinging snowballs at me from the heavily laden spruce boughs. She took delight in blowing about so much snow dust that I couldn’t see more than a few feet in front of me. Delighted, I quickly trod down my street, seeking shelter in the trees at the end of the cul-de-sac for the rest of my first... Read more →