Jogging in Montreal's first snowfall.

It's not often I leap out of bed but when I saw some white stuff out the bedroom window I ran straight to the phone. "Merry Xmas" laughs my jogging partner. Er ... I think I'll take a few photographs and forget about the run, I say. Are you kidding? we have to run - this is winter, she says.

Of course we're still going running.
 Of course I was forgetting for a moment that I have to act like a Canadian now and not be such a British wimp. We ran in the snow all previous winters so why not now - in Montreal's first snowfall? But where are my leggings,  waterproofs, long socks, balaclava?
 All probably still in the basement. There is a lot of work involved in going out in a Montreal winter - this is just the first day and I'm complaining already. So off we go and jog through the snow - it feels like a sandy beach and we decide it is better for your joints than concrete (how's that for optimism?)
 No-one bats a frozen eyelid, not even the lollipop lady who poses for a picture. Next to her a little girl is making angels in the snow. Now I am remembering what a Montreal winter feels like all over again. This is my fourth and I still feel a mixture of excitement and nervousness . The world is suddenly a silent one and the flat feels extra cozy.
 I don't know how but there is even a smell in the air now we are cocooned in heavy snow. I wander around the house trying to work out what it is. I think it smells like Xmas.

Just another 5 months and it'll all be over.

Comments

  1. 5 months?!?!?! Thanks for that, Anne...

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  2. Do people jog in the cold winter of Montreal? That's the first thing I want to know before moving there. What gear do I need?

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  3. Yes we aren't particularly hardcore but we jog all winter. You get used to the snow and usually it is cold enough to form a hard base. On really cold days (windchill can make it -38) it's good to wear top quality gloves or mits, good hat, face mask and second layer under your usual running clothes. But those days don't happen very often and the cold is manageable.

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