Nice article Tom! (and nice picture on Wittenberg). I read the article while I was at Hermits place this weekend. I noticed I even have a little mention in it, as I'm Winter#628. Of course, it has since grown since you wrote the article too.
Wittenberg was a bunch of firsts for me, it was my first peak in the catskills, it was my first winter hike in the catskills, it was also my first time that I've used crampons (6 pt Charlet Mosers) anywhere! Previously to the catskills, I did a bunch of peaks in the ADKs, namely Marcy, Algonquin, Colden in the summer.
Jay