As our bodies and brains are still adjusting to the cold weather we have made a few resolutions: we will turn up the thermostat more than in years past, we will drink lots of tea, coffee, cocoa, and chai, and we will get outside and make the most of the weather. Two winters ago we discovered snowshoeing and were instant converts, setting aside our newly acquired (at an REI return sale, so minimal investment) cross country ski gear for the freedom of snowshoes. We love hiking so it was a natural, seasonal transition. Also, once you have the gear it’s pretty much free–always a good price.
When John learned this week that there was already a decent snow base at Mt. Hood, he immediately suggested we make a quick run up to the mountain this weekend for a warm-up hike. We had the added fun bonus of dog-sitting for Darcy this weekend and thought she’d enjoy seeing snow for the first time and getting a good workout. She’s still a young dog and has tons of energy (is anyone looking into how to convert that into some form of clean energy?) so this was a good way for her to put some of that to good use–she even managed to pull John down, face-first, into the snow.
We had a really fun morning hiking a classic Mt. Hood trail, Mirror Lake. As many times as we have driven by the trailhead, we have only stopped once and we didn’t make it past the parking lot due our lack of preparation and the piles of snow that were still blocking the trail. This time we came prepared and enjoyed the climb up to the lake, with Darcy setting the pace most of the way. The snow was beautiful and untouched in many areas, there were patches of blue sky, and the temperature was just right–a great way to kick off the snow season. By the time we got back to the car, Darcy was exhausted and we were quite pleased with our day in the snow.
