[fourteen410]

Decided to try a new spot for our annual New Years trip. Located near Sherman Pass in NE WA, the Snow Peak Cabin is a pretty popular forest service rental. I actually had to book this trip back in June. We headed over the stormy pass on Thursday night and spent the night in Omak. Sunny skies greeted us on Friday morning as we drove east to Sherman Pass. We parked at the so-called Sno-Park (more on that later) and headed south on the Kettle Crest until it crossed Hwy 20. We had some postholey fun locating the route on the south side of the highway. We later discovered that there was a much easier way in just east of the pass. After an initial climb, we reached the junction of the Kettle Crest Trail and the Sherman loop. For whatever reason, the western half of the Sherman loop isn't shown on topo maps. I had called the ranger a few days before to get information about this route, but to no avail, so we opted for the eastern route along the Kettle Crest. As we would later find out, this is not the preferred winter route. We ended up breaking trail through deep powder for quite some time. We eventually reached the junction of the Sherman loop and the route to the cabin. Deep, untouched powder and hidden air pockets made for slow travel. The ranger I spoke with had told me that there would be a well packed trench and plenty of diamonds to follow all the way out to the cabin. We found neither of those statements to be accurate. Despite this, we ultimately found our way to the cabin, arriving by headlamp after a beautiful sunset. The cabin was cozy and the wood stove warmed it up nicely for a very comfortable night. The next morning brought unexpected clear skies and a fabulous sunrise. Having checked the NOAA forecast prior to our departure, we were expecting to wake up to 1-3" of new snow, but as the day went on, it became clear that the storm was running behind. It didn't end up reaching us until after 11PM Saturday night. We woke up to just under a foot of new snow on Sunday morning with howling winds and very poor visibility. Our reservation was only for two nights, so we had to head out. We didn't get very far before deciding to head back to the cabin to wait for the storm to pass. Conditions only deteriorated from there, so we made the call to stay put in the cabin and hope that the next group would not kick us out. We got lucky. A group of five arrived around 1:30pm and said we could stay. Not wanting to impose, we made one more attempt to head out. But after a quarter mile of swimming in deep powder and sideways blowing snow, we sheepishly returned to the cabin. Our hosts, a group of friends from Chewelah, graciously welcomed us back inside. We enjoyed hilarious conversation with them and reluctantly accepted their offers of food and libations. Best of all, we were safe and warm for the night. The storm finally passed at some point during the night. We headed out under sunny skies around 9am on Monday morning, with our comrades breaking trail for us in the deep powder. It was incredibly cold - 0 degrees with a -25F wind chill. I arrived back at Sherman Pass around 11:30am to find that the Sno Park had not been plowed. WTF?! Even stranger, someone had brushed the snow off my windshield to make sure I had a Sno Park pass. Apparently there are enough resources for rule enforcement, but not snowplows. After getting their car unstuck, our comrades helped push our car out of the snow before we parted ways. We will be eternally grateful to them. Happy 2017! Photos below.

[lookout bob]

great photos and adventure Lauren. You seem to find the most wonderful places in your travels. Really nice of those folks to share up with you providing them with great karma for 2017.

[Gimpilator]

What an awesome trip. Sounds like a nice group of folks.

[mbravenboer]

Unexpected hard work and a longer stay in a cabin, sounds like success to me!

[Ringangleclaw]

[Ringangleclaw]

[Distel32]

[Chico]

Yep, a summer/fall route and a winter route. Map showing trails here. http://capitolriders.org/Maps/SnowPeak.jpg Ferry County BCHW was in a few months ago and rebuilt the porch. They pack in all the propane too. General Information Directions: Winter Access: Use the Kettle Crest Trailhead located on top of Sherman Pass. At this point, visitors must park (a Sno-Parks permit is required) and ski or snowshoe to the cabin. Follow the Kettle Crest South Trail #13 south one mile to the junction of the Sherman Loop Trail #72. Follow the Sherman Loop Trail #72 around the west side of Sherman Peak to the junction of the Kettle Crest Trail #13. Continue south on the Kettle Crest Trail #13 until you reach the cabin. Approximate distance one-way is five miles. Summer and Fall Access: In addition to the above route, the Cabin may be reached via the Snow Peak Trailhead. At the trailhead, visitors must park and hike, bike or ride horses or stock to the cabin. Follow the Snow Peak Trail #10 east for approximately 2.7 miles to its junction with the Kettle Crest South Trail #13. Turn right on the Kettle Crest South Trail #13 and continue south for approximately 0.5 mile until you reach the cabin.

[GaliWalker]

Pristine.

[raising3hikers]

thanks for posting cool to see a TR from that part of the state

[RodF]

Your nighttime time-lapse photos are evocative, artistic, like Christmas card paintings! Thanks for sharing.

[Chief Joseph]

Looks awesome, but the "No peeing off the porch" rule is a deal breaker for me.

[fourteen410]

[trailmo]

Maybe it's a good thing I didn't go with you guys... but maybe I should've sent the gps track I made of the west side trail that has all the blue diamonds... Fourth of July is right around the corner though!! -Molly

[fourteen410]

Yeah, you really should have sent your tracks, sheeeesh