Snow shoeing is not Derrick's favorite outdoor activity. However, in the winter there aren't many other options. After a bit of negotiating, I convinced him another snow shoe trip was in order and sure enough he had a great time!
The destination this time was Skyline Lake, again very near Stevens Pass. We parked in the north lot and hit the trail. You follow a groomed road up so snow shoes weren't even really necessary for a lot of the hike. It was a fairly gradual climb with increasingly nice views. We reached the end of the road at a tower (cell phone maybe?). At this point you have a nice view in several directions.
Here we mistakenly followed a smaller trail that we thought was leading to the lake. We soon realized it didn't quite seam right, but were almost at a high point so decided to keep going. We got up to a nice little summit where we met a few snowboarders and back country skiers. It was their tracks we followed. They were getting ready to hit some backcountry slopes so we took over their spot and had a nice lunch.
The views were great and the weather was quite cooperative. We decided our high point was more exciting than the lake so didn't bother to make a stop there on the way down. We realized later that the turn off to the lake is actually before you get to the tower. On the way down we attempted a mini glisade without much success. However, we did manage to amuse many other groups who were on their way up.
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We found a snow hut along the trail. Derrick decided to climb on in and take a picture. |
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Derrick actually enjoying snow shoeing |
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Panorama from our view point |
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Snowy trees and ski runs |
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King of the mountain! |
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Lunch time |
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Derrick being a poser |