Day before Daone

1/14/2010 - 1/15/2010
Rested pretty much all day yesterday and then we made a trip into town to pick up some more provisions and check e-mail at the local library. Food isn’t as expensive as petrol is.
Both Justin and I ran headaches all day long. He got a stuffy nose, but then got over it quickly. I on the other hand, got a full blown sinus infection. I got yet another horrible night sleep and had to physically get up at 5 am just to breathe. I hate that. Blowing my nose and scrambling for some kind of medication I might have in my bag to control the symptoms was not helping Justin sleep, so I went downstairs to read my book and blow my nose in private.
Still feeling physically strong, we packed up and started walking to the pharmacy in Daone, about 6km down the road. I loaded up on everything I could and was happy that I could breathe through my nose once again. We were able to thumb a ride both ways, so it was easy to get around.
We met Dennis who was hanging out in his van once we were back at the competition area. He brought 3 other Dutch people with him. They told us that they too had been ice climbing up the valley and found the same sketchy conditions that we had come across the day before. The Dutch crew is good energy and all smiles. It turns out that Dennis also got a sinus infection. I attribute it to the train ride epic to Moscow. It’s about the right incubation period and we all have the same symptoms. Hmmmm.
We went back to our sweet accommodations and I went to bad to warm back up since I felt like I was running a bit of a fever still. We had to load back up once more nad go register at the UIAA office in Daone, then back up the valley. It’s bit of a dog and pony show, but I’m really looking forward to climbing tomorrow and doing my best. Tomorrow is the next competition and I need to have my game face, put on my big boy pants, and “harden the $%&* up.”
Got registered for the competition and we're loaded guns and ready to go ! Should be fun.