It's the middle of winter. It's bitterly cold. The ice and snow are more than a foot deep in places. Winds promise to approach hurricane force.

Why on earth would a group of central Mainers want to climb Mount Washington under such conditions, anyway?

"There's that question again, 'Why?' " says Craig Nelson of Starks and avid hiker who has done the Appalachian Trail. "Well, why not?"

Some of among us choose to curse Ol' Man Winter. Others, like Nelson, Dan Larochelle and Craig Bennett choose to run headlong into it. Why?

In Saturday's outdoors section, these guys challenge to you to respond to "Why not?"