Mileage: 9 EG: 2000
I had a free Saturday and rounded the girls up for a snow adventure. The 4 of us headed to the mountains early and donned our layers and layers. It was cooooold one. For Kendall Peak Lakes, you have to park at the Gold Creek Pond snopark. The snoparks take a different pass than the normal ones, so come prepared. We saw many cars ticketed! We brought our snowshoes with, but recent tail reports said the trail was compact so we left them in the car. You hike the long road walk up and up and up. It's a steady ascent with great views of The Summit ski hill across the highway. We got to the top and accidentally went right at the fork, but so glad we did. It went out to a great overlook of surrounding peaks and Kachess Lake. We headed back down the hill (off trail a bit) and post holed up to my hip! Whoops. Back on the main trail we then found the first lake apparently. It was all snow covered and not very large. Off the main trail Catherine found a half built snow structure that must've been used for snow camping. It was a perfect spot to stop and eat hot soup, and share this tasty Oberto trail mix. We tried to go to the second lake but at this point the snow was super loose and powder and was not fun without snowshoes. We were all also in a lot of pain from the cold and just wanted to get back. On the way up we didn't see many people at all, but on the way down we saw lots. Took us 4.5 hours to do the 9 miles, not bad at all if I do say so. Shout out to Catherine's family for taking us in for a glass of hot cocoa and great company after the hike. Perfect end to a cold adventure day.
First snowshoeing adventure- ever! Finally got to try out our new MSR Revo Explore in some fresh powder on the mountain loop highway. The road was full of snow/ slush/ ice and was pretty dangerous. The parking lot had not been closed off yet, but was full of deep snow. The 5 of us + 2 dogs donned the snowshoes and headed out on the trail. The snowshoes were not 100% necessary as the trail had been stomped down a lot. The trail is 2.4 miles roundtrip and little elevation gain. As we approached the turnaround we heard a loud noise and it was an avalanche at the end of the trail. Some people got caught in the dust of it, so we decided not to venture too close to the mountains. After some lunch we headed back and made it back to the car, but not before Cooper decided to jump in a half frozen pond. That dog. On the way out we saw a car deep in a ditch and stopped to pull over to help and lend our tow rope. Be careful on those roads out there!