After the last few days of pounding rain in the lowlands, the snowpack in the mountains has been revitalized. C.J. and I drove across the pass (where there was plenty of snow) to Cle Elum-Roslyn-Ronald and on to Salmon la Sac where the roads AND the surrounding forest were disappointingly snow-free. We tried driving up the Cooper Lake road until it became snow covered but decided that there would be too many snowmobiles for pleasant skiing and returned to the SnoPark.
It was pretty clear that we had come to the wrong place if we wanted to XC ski, but we could climb to the snow on the steeper Jolly Mountain FS road and then snowshoe as far beyond that as we had energy. We reached snow patches quickly and shortly afterward the road was covered with new snow and old base packed by the passage of a snowmobile or two. Snowshoes were not required until we reached a fork where we left the tracked road, and continued to a scenic lunch spot (about 2 3/4 mi total). On the way down we left our snowshoes on to avoid the possibility of potholing and slipping. The snowshoe crampons really do work well. By the time we had almost reached bare road, the mostly sunny sky had turned dark with clouds and we were getting some snow pellet precipitation. Exercise, sunshine and new trails - a good day!
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