Trip report - On the edge of freezing
Jan 25, 2016 16:37:23 GMT -8
Chuck the Mauler, rebeccad, and 12 more like this
Post by tigger on Jan 25, 2016 16:37:23 GMT -8
My son and I met a buddy from Portland up on Mt. Hood Friday night. My son was interested in building a snow cave, and I had a few layers I wanted to test out before my Arctic trip. Come to find out, temps were predicted to hit above freezing Saturday. By the time we made it to the take off point, the parking lot was pretty much empty except for a group having a campfire...in a parking space.
Considering the weight of our gear, we decided to skip the sleds and just throw on our packs. We all took off in the dark.
We hiked up past the usual crowd area and finally decided on a little wooded area right next to the main valley. We made camp and after a few beers and moisture starting to come down as sleet, we decided to pack it in - Mark and Noah slept in my SD tent and I slept in the bivy. By morning, the slush had turned to an inch of snow. Mark made the coffee using a Whitebox stove and I had my first cup since last spring. Not bad, but not enough to convert me back.
After breakfast, Noah proceed to start his project for the day - A snowcave.
In the meantime, Mark and I hiked around the area for a few hours up in the trees and then attempted to find a place to cross the river. There were a few questionable spots, but we decided with the temps so warm, it wasn't worth the risk of getting wet.
When we got back to camp, the birds decided to visit us. We had a few extra sunflower seeds and corn nuts so we shared.
After snacking, we looked to see how far my son had come with his snowcave. Mission was accomplished.
After a nice evening meal, plenty of whiskey, and more beer we decided to hit the hay. In the morning, we awoke to a solid four inches of fresh powder - a pleasant surprise considering we were concerned about rain/sleet.
After watching the sun rise, we made breakfast and sipped our coffee.
After breakfast, we took our time packing up camp and headed out. Instead of the soggy wet trip, it turned out to be a nice relaxing weekend with a good friend and my son.
Considering the weight of our gear, we decided to skip the sleds and just throw on our packs. We all took off in the dark.
We hiked up past the usual crowd area and finally decided on a little wooded area right next to the main valley. We made camp and after a few beers and moisture starting to come down as sleet, we decided to pack it in - Mark and Noah slept in my SD tent and I slept in the bivy. By morning, the slush had turned to an inch of snow. Mark made the coffee using a Whitebox stove and I had my first cup since last spring. Not bad, but not enough to convert me back.
After breakfast, Noah proceed to start his project for the day - A snowcave.
In the meantime, Mark and I hiked around the area for a few hours up in the trees and then attempted to find a place to cross the river. There were a few questionable spots, but we decided with the temps so warm, it wasn't worth the risk of getting wet.
When we got back to camp, the birds decided to visit us. We had a few extra sunflower seeds and corn nuts so we shared.
After snacking, we looked to see how far my son had come with his snowcave. Mission was accomplished.
After a nice evening meal, plenty of whiskey, and more beer we decided to hit the hay. In the morning, we awoke to a solid four inches of fresh powder - a pleasant surprise considering we were concerned about rain/sleet.
After watching the sun rise, we made breakfast and sipped our coffee.
After breakfast, we took our time packing up camp and headed out. Instead of the soggy wet trip, it turned out to be a nice relaxing weekend with a good friend and my son.
