02-09-25
After
a very dry January, we had a good dump of snow. Some in the lowlands
and more in the mountains. Last year I did not get out one any cross
country ski trips. It was well past time to get one in. Gary and John
were free for Sunday. It was Super Bowl Sunday so I hoped fewer people
would venture into the mountains to ski. We were considering a trip up
towards Windy Pass or just staying on the old railroad grade along
Keechelus Lake. Gary and I met John at Sunset Way and I drove east. We
usually plan to get to the Hyak sno-park for the opening at 8:00 am.
This time we met at Sunset at 8:00 am. We had all day for an easy trip
and the football game starts at 3:30 pm. Well, perhaps we should stick
with arriving at 8:00 am. Traffic was much heavier than we see at the
earlier hour. The first exit was backed up quite a way on I-90. The
second exit had a smaller line. Even the Hyak exit was backed up onto
the highway. The Hyak exit did move at a steady pace. Traffic and
backups probably added less than ten minutes to our drive. I was
concerned that there would be a whole lot of folks getting started at
once. In fact, the lot was less than half full. It was about 26F when
we arrived. We were packed up and on our way at 8:56 am.
First, we had to cross the parking lot. It had a little snow on top of an icy layer. I slipped twice but did not fall. Several groups were about to start as we arrived at the groomed track. For a 26F morning it was not that cold. There was no wind. There was a little sunshine and partial blue sky. My challenge all day was to get photos. Stopping for a short time put me well behind the others. Skiing is faster than hiking and too many photo stops would put me way behind. Also just the process of taking getting out my camera without falling over. The groomed track was excellent. The snow was well packed but not icy. Great conditions for a first ski trip in two years. Skiing is so much faster than hiking. It is at least 1.5 times a hiking pace. At first we were in forest after some mountain views from the parking lot. Along the lake we went from forest to open views right alongside the lake. The trees were freshly flocked with snow. It was a very scenic view all day long. When we ski up to Windy Pass the common corridor trail up to that route is available from our 8:00 am start. The route from the ski area opens at 9:00 am. We have a chance to ski up to the pass ahead of the crowds. This day we started right about the time the ski area trail opens. Rather than join the crowd and brave the hills, we decided to stay on the flat grade with a small crowd.
At the old snowsheds site we were out in the open right above the lake. Now it was almost all blue sky and very sunny. It felt more like 50F than 30F. Only the southern half of the lake was frozen. It was unusual to see open water in February. I took off a glove to make taking pictures easier and my hand was never cold. Our plan was to take a break at the Roaring Creek Bridge then head back. That would get us something over 9 miles. At the bridge we recorded about 4.75 miles. After lunch I went farther down the trail to get my day up to 10 miles. It did not take much at a fast speed to get in a quarter mile. I stopped at the outhouse building. I took off my skis and dropped down to the covered spot in front of the door. A small sign said: "closed for winter". Crap! I would not be using the facilities. I scraped ice off the bottoms of my skis and went back to the grade. By the time I crossed the bridge there were no people where we had stopped. I figured they must have headed back ahead of me.
I upped my pace and before too long they were back in sight. It was fun to just sprint along the trail. I was feeling a few muscles that do not get worked with hiking. All the more reason to ski more often and not have to deal with this pain. We had a bit of a headwind coming back. The open sections like the snowshed sites were most noticeable. I kept expecting to see the usual big crowds in the last mile but they did not occur. We definitely saw other skiers but I only passed a couple people in our lane. By the last half mile I still had energy to burn so I sprinted in. I was feeling it at the end. The lot was almost full on our return. The blue sky had been getting a bit more white coming back. It was still a very nice day and still not that cold. On the trip back we had views down the lake to Snoqualmie Mountain and Guye Peak. The summits were occasionally in the open though both peaks were in clouds at times. Not the best views of them but not too bad either.
Gary's GPS track had he and John back where we put on skis at 12:30 pm. I was a couple minutes ahead of them. From car to car I skied 10 miles with breaks and photos in 3:28. For the first trip in two years that was not too bad. Other than last year I usually get in a few good trips including trips like Amabilis Mountain with over 2000' of fast descent. I was just glad to get back out on skis once again.
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Trips - 2025
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First, we had to cross the parking lot. It had a little snow on top of an icy layer. I slipped twice but did not fall. Several groups were about to start as we arrived at the groomed track. For a 26F morning it was not that cold. There was no wind. There was a little sunshine and partial blue sky. My challenge all day was to get photos. Stopping for a short time put me well behind the others. Skiing is faster than hiking and too many photo stops would put me way behind. Also just the process of taking getting out my camera without falling over. The groomed track was excellent. The snow was well packed but not icy. Great conditions for a first ski trip in two years. Skiing is so much faster than hiking. It is at least 1.5 times a hiking pace. At first we were in forest after some mountain views from the parking lot. Along the lake we went from forest to open views right alongside the lake. The trees were freshly flocked with snow. It was a very scenic view all day long. When we ski up to Windy Pass the common corridor trail up to that route is available from our 8:00 am start. The route from the ski area opens at 9:00 am. We have a chance to ski up to the pass ahead of the crowds. This day we started right about the time the ski area trail opens. Rather than join the crowd and brave the hills, we decided to stay on the flat grade with a small crowd.
At the old snowsheds site we were out in the open right above the lake. Now it was almost all blue sky and very sunny. It felt more like 50F than 30F. Only the southern half of the lake was frozen. It was unusual to see open water in February. I took off a glove to make taking pictures easier and my hand was never cold. Our plan was to take a break at the Roaring Creek Bridge then head back. That would get us something over 9 miles. At the bridge we recorded about 4.75 miles. After lunch I went farther down the trail to get my day up to 10 miles. It did not take much at a fast speed to get in a quarter mile. I stopped at the outhouse building. I took off my skis and dropped down to the covered spot in front of the door. A small sign said: "closed for winter". Crap! I would not be using the facilities. I scraped ice off the bottoms of my skis and went back to the grade. By the time I crossed the bridge there were no people where we had stopped. I figured they must have headed back ahead of me.
I upped my pace and before too long they were back in sight. It was fun to just sprint along the trail. I was feeling a few muscles that do not get worked with hiking. All the more reason to ski more often and not have to deal with this pain. We had a bit of a headwind coming back. The open sections like the snowshed sites were most noticeable. I kept expecting to see the usual big crowds in the last mile but they did not occur. We definitely saw other skiers but I only passed a couple people in our lane. By the last half mile I still had energy to burn so I sprinted in. I was feeling it at the end. The lot was almost full on our return. The blue sky had been getting a bit more white coming back. It was still a very nice day and still not that cold. On the trip back we had views down the lake to Snoqualmie Mountain and Guye Peak. The summits were occasionally in the open though both peaks were in clouds at times. Not the best views of them but not too bad either.
Gary's GPS track had he and John back where we put on skis at 12:30 pm. I was a couple minutes ahead of them. From car to car I skied 10 miles with breaks and photos in 3:28. For the first trip in two years that was not too bad. Other than last year I usually get in a few good trips including trips like Amabilis Mountain with over 2000' of fast descent. I was just glad to get back out on skis once again.
 Hyak Sno-Park |
 Start Of The Route |
 Gary Gets Ready |
 John Is Ready To Go |
 Sunshine Is Close By |
 It is Cool In The Shade |
 John & Gary Are Ahead |
 Lake Is In Sight |
 Sun & Shade |
 Sunshine & Frozen Lake |
 Looking Back |
 Here Comes Gary |
 Snoqualmie Mt & Guye Pk |
 Skiers Zoom By |
 Icicles |
 Looking Toward The Sun |
 Nearing Half Way |
 Closed Bathroom |
 Heading Back |
 4 Miles To Go |
 Flocked Trees |
 Lake Reflection |
 Unexpected Solitude |
 Back At The Car |
Trips - 2025
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