[pianodirt]

I tried going up FR9030, exit 45 off of I-90, which I had driven up nearly to the trailhead to Talapus Lake the previous week. The snow was slush and even in 4WD I was going nowhere. I fiddled with a (new) set of chains for a while and finally gave up. I had only brought a printed map of me for that area, so I thought I should go somewhere I knew the area. I decided upon Lake Annette, which is south of I-90, exit 47. Unlike other years, there was an 8-foot high pile of snow that blocked the road to the parking lot, so it was a short 10-minute extra walk. The snow in the actual parking lot had a bit of crust on top, it was fun walking on it. The trail was very well packed. Snowshoes were not really needed, but the crampons on them were nice. The snow was quite slushy and in some areas the trail was slippery. I did not make it to the lake, about a mile before it or so. On the way back, I heard a ruffle in the trees, then a loud "whump" and a "bang" at the same time. The bang sounded like a pistol being fired. A huge clump of the wet-cement snow had fallen from a tree, about 40-50 feet away from me. The sound of it hitting the snow on the ground must've created both the whump and bang sounds. I walked up to see it and it looked like a small meteor had hit the ground. Would've broken my neck for sure if not killed me had it hit me. It's not a very scenic route. A few views crossing avalanche chutes and not much more, though the lake offers a bit more view. It's a decent close to home workout for winter, though. Funny story: A couple years ago I was snow camping at Lake Annette. A couple guys showed up later and set up camp not too far from me. It got dark and they started a walk around the lake. For a while, I couldn't see them. Then there was this bright light, as bright as the sun, the whole lake basin was lit up like daylight. There was not a sound and skies were clear Totally freaked me out, I thought there was a UFO or something. Only thing I could think of was the flash on a camera, but it seemed way too bright for that. When the guys returned, I asked them if that flash was from their camera, it was.