Winter Weekend Forecast Doesn’t Call For Snow? We’ll Strap on Our Snowshoes Anyway

You would think that the infamous Pacific Northwest precipitation would translate into powdery trails up in the mountains. That’s what you would think. The reality is that a lot of the time we’re graced with days, even weeks, sans snow, leaving us an icy layer to attempt to play on. But complaining about the lack of fresh powder is even worse than not taking advantage of the snow that has fallen, and so we decided to take off for a Saturday of snowshoeing.  And so, outfitted with some new MSR snowshoes, and decked out in hip sunglasses, we found ourselves at  Barlow Pass on Mount Hood.

Packs filled with apples and granola bars (because we left in too much of a hurry to actually plan a real lunch), we set out on a section of the Pacific Crest Trail, headed for Trillium Lake. To say the snow was well packed would be an understatement. “Having fun on the ice today?” I remarked when we passed a group of cross country skiiers.

“Yeah, you’re probably having a much easier time,” replied one of them, pointing to my snowshoes.

“True, although I think it would be easier just to walk.”

But if you’ve come to snowshoe, you’re going to snowshoe dammit! No matter how much easier taking them off might be…

The hard packed snow was soon forgotten, our minds much more focused on the welcomed sight of the bright sunshine streaming through the trees.  Blue skies with minimal clouds meant we could wear our sunglasses without feeling like we were merely making an attempt at being fashionable; although guaging from Kyle’s choice of killer white shades, I’m not sure we should totally count that option out.

After a long descent that we were sure would defeat our canine friend, we stood on the banks of a snow covered Trillium Lake.

Looking out over the white lake, the middle of it free of ski and snowshoe tracks, I asked, “how far out would you guys dare to go?”

Not too far was the group consensus. “Safety first” tends to be a good policy, especially when you’re talking about the risk of breaking through thin ice only to find yourself swimming in freezing water. Definitely not what we wanted out of our Saturday, so we stuck to the outer edges and admired the pristine snow from afar.

Six miles, a mini photo shoot in a deserted igloo, a few snowball ambushes, and a lost cell phone (that Christopher was attentive enough to find and Kyle was inquisitive enough to track down the owner) later, we were back at the trailhead, the need for actual food and drink setting in.

Unstrap the snowshoes, pile into the car — with said canine friend on our lap in the backseat — and head for warm showers, a comfortable couch and an IPA where we bask in our winter workout glory. Icy winter trails, we’ll take you on any day!