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SadieMBeagle Thread killa!
Joined: 13 Oct 2008 Posts: 152 | TRs | Pics Location: On the flip side |
Alternate title: If I had an iPhone I'd google 'how to camp in the snow'
After a long winter spent snowboarding, lately I've been jonesing to get out in my tent. I wasn't sure how I was going to accomplish this, as I have a fear of camping in a snowfield (fear of the unknown, I suppose), plus the weather these last few weeks has been far more conducive to snowboarding than backpacking (i.e., huge quantities of powder dumps). I'd read a few TRs of Boulder River, plus it's in Best Hikes with Dogs: Western Washington, so it seemed like a safe bet. Now, when to go? Then Sunday dawned beautifully and I had my chance!
Of course by the time I grabbed my gear from high and low, packed up the dog and made it to the trailhead, it was 4 p.m. Thank goodness for DST! Still, time to hit the trail. Someone obligingly cut a car-hole in the trees blocking the road, and I was able to drive all the way to the trailhead.
Subaru-sized hole Sadie doesn't seem to mind the new pack Flora
I wound my way up the trail through the sunny afternoon. There were only a few other people out, and none of them were staying the night. I stopped to chat with another woman with a dog. When she learned I was staying overnight, she said she'd been up a couple of miles, and while the snow was slippery in spots, I should be fine. Enthused, I pushed onward.
Beginning of the snow Towards the end of the trail - snow was deep
Alas, a couple miles up the trail turned out to be about as far as the nice trail conditions went. The further I continued, the snowier it got. What had been a fun tromp over some hard-crust snow became a scramble with a heavy backpack over snowdrifts and under logs, groveling through the mud in places. By 5:30 p.m. I figured I'd better take stock of the situation. I move at a pretty good clip in normal trail conditions, but I have no idea how quickly (or slowly) I move in the snow and consequently had no idea how much further it was to trail's end (though I think I was pretty close). Also, I figured that the campsite at the end would be covered in snow, and as I mentioned before I was not interested in tonight being my inaugural snow-camp. Reluctantly, I turned back and decided to set up camp at the first snow-free flat spot I could find. As I got closer and closer to the trailhead I wondered if I'd end up setting up the tent in the parking lot...which I decided was fine with me if nothing better came along. What is it about camping in a tent that excites me so? Happy childhood memories, I suppose. Thankfully the situation didn't come to that - I found a lovely campsite about .75 miles from the trailhead.
At the campsite - Sadie scopes out the perimeter OMG, eyes! Good thing it's just Sadie
After setting up the tent and "making" dinner out of a bag of freeze-dried food that's been in my stash for a few years (good thing those things last forever), I whiled the evening away reading and listening to the raging river nearby. Good times.
After breakfast this morning and breaking down camp, I headed the small distance back to my car, satisfied at last. For this week anyway!
More pictures
I'm bilingual - I speak English and smack
I'm bilingual - I speak English and smack
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Quark Niece of Alvy Moore
Joined: 15 May 2003 Posts: 14152 | TRs | Pics
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Quark
Niece of Alvy Moore
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Mon Mar 30, 2009 12:59 pm
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You put your pooch on a leash just for the photos, didn't you?
"...Other than that, the post was more or less accurate."
Bernardo, NW Hikers' Bureau Chief of Reporting
"...Other than that, the post was more or less accurate."
Bernardo, NW Hikers' Bureau Chief of Reporting
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SadieMBeagle Thread killa!
Joined: 13 Oct 2008 Posts: 152 | TRs | Pics Location: On the flip side |
Very funny :P You're correct, Sadie's usually off leash - she is a very well-behaved girl. But I didn't want her losing her fla$hy new pack, so I think she'll be spending more time on leash from now on.
I'm bilingual - I speak English and smack
I'm bilingual - I speak English and smack
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Hikingqueen Member
Joined: 12 Nov 2007 Posts: 2946 | TRs | Pics
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Good to see someone cut a hole in the tree. You are brave, I'm not ready for camping yet. You did have a heater at least, your cute dog.
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Grizzy Yellow Cedar Hugger
Joined: 16 Jul 2006 Posts: 1936 | TRs | Pics Location: Switchbacks |
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Grizzy
Yellow Cedar Hugger
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Mon Mar 30, 2009 3:55 pm
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Nice job!
All the birds have flown up and gone;
A lonely cloud floats leisurely by.
We never tire of looking at each other -
Only the mountain and I. ~Li Po~
All the birds have flown up and gone;
A lonely cloud floats leisurely by.
We never tire of looking at each other -
Only the mountain and I. ~Li Po~
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captain jack Serving suggestion
Joined: 25 May 2004 Posts: 3389 | TRs | Pics Location: Upper Fidalgo |
It's probably best that you didnt camp at the end of the trail this time of year, I'm pretty sure a Sasquatch lives upriver just past there, and he prolly would have eaten your doggie.
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SadieMBeagle Thread killa!
Joined: 13 Oct 2008 Posts: 152 | TRs | Pics Location: On the flip side |
Oh goodness, Sasquatch?! I thought that was a plane I heard... and yes Sadie sleeps in the sleeping bag with me. It's very warm, but things can get a bit snug... we might have to work on that in the coming months.
I'm bilingual - I speak English and smack
I'm bilingual - I speak English and smack
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