Tahoe - Snowshoeing

“I'm thinking or trying to make reservations at a couple of the Sierra Club huts up around Lake Tahoe this winter. I'd like to do some snowshoeing and stay at the huts. Has anyone done this? Is anyone else interested?”

“Sounds like a blast. Won't be able to make tha trip...not this winter, anywho.

Already been thinkin' of bustin' out tha shoes, and been keeping an eye out for "lightweight" snowboots. (Sounds like an oxymoronic, don't it?)

I have cold-weather boots that keep my feet toasty, but they weigh tons and slow me down after a distance. So I usually wear my hiking boots, but my toes get cold fast depending on how cold the temp is.

i believe with this "lightweight" trend...that it'll touch the winter boot scene soon.”

“Hey wingding put me on your list. I have a couple trips I'm trying to put together, mostly I'm interested in snoeshoeing in a few miles w my pack (I pull it on a sled). I also want to hit Royal Gorge a few times, in case you haven't been there you can snowshoe off their nordic ski trails & access their warming huts. check them out at http://www.royalgorge.com/default_high.asp”

“I looked at the Royal Gorge site and didn't see anything about snowshoeing. Can you go on the same tracks as the skiers?

I'm going to do some research on the Sierra Club Huts and see how to make reservations for sometime in January or February.”

“That sounds great. The hut thing sounds cool but I'd do a tent too.”

“Yeah. Let me know. I've seen info on a couple of the huts and they look cool. I've done some XC skiing at Royal Gorge and around Tahoe. Royal is partially on USFS land, so I think those portions are open to the public for whatever you want (snowshoe/xc skiing). Loch Leven is a pretty good place to to go as well. Also stuff by Boreal.”

“We've done something similar in Montana by XC ski. The Forest service rents out cabins and (a few) old fire towers. Some are pretty remote and you have to ski or snowshoe into. They uaually come equipped w/ firewood (U-Split); you bring your own sleeping gear and food. It's usually about $20-$25/night. Better than a snow cave! Ask Tahoe if he's round. Here's an example of FS cabins from the Lewis and Clark Forest in MT. Cabin Link”

“There are also a number of great spots up near Loon Lake / Crystal Basin area. Because of their need to get to their power plant up there, SMUD keeps the road to Loon Lake plowed all winter. You'll never be snowed in for more than a day before the plows come in, I winter camp up there because of that.

Rosey is correct, you can access a lot of the USFS land around Royal Gorge, and you CAN snowshoe in there as well. I believe they frown upon snowshoes directly on the groomed trail, but you can hike alongside them. I may be wrong, but I believe they even rent snowshoes on-site...”

“I'd like to keep this thread alive...

Anyone interested in a winter camping / snowshoeing trip let's make sure we stay in contact, via email or however. I am jazzed about some winter camping trips I want to do this winter, time's drawing closer than we think for planning these!”

“How about we keep this thread alive by throwing around some ideas?

I think the RG idea with was great, and thanks for the link. I'll be a newbie to XC ski this year and will be giving them a try (I have done alpine my whole life).

There's a good looking day trip around (and up) the Castle Peak area (Boreal - rosey?) with a cabin located back there.

You're CB idea sounds good, I assume snowshoes would be the preferred method of transport because of the trees?

What about an overnight snowshoe or ski trip to Pyramid Peak?

Here's sokme links that have me drooling.

For maps:

http://thebackcountry.net/

For Shasta and Lassen:

http://www.skimountaineer.com/”

“Yes, let's keep this link alive. It would be nice to get a group overnight trip going for this winter. Do you think my Sierra Designs Clip Flashlight (3-season tent) will hold for short trips in the snow? Do you have some more information on Pyramid Peak?”

“Wingding, the link below has some pictures and a discussion of Pyramid - it's a nearly 10,000 foot peak in Desolation with the best winter access being from Hwy 50 at the Twin Bridges trailhead (same site has Castle Peak and others). This spring, a bunch of TTers got together for a trip in that area and posted some great pics of the peak from the east - I wish I had bookmarked the site.

http://thebackcountry.net/Tahoe_Truckee_Trails_Maps.htm#Lake Tahoe telemark or randoneetrails and peaks to climb

As far as that SD Clip, it would work as long as the weather is good, and I assume we would probably shoot for good weather to do this. Otherwise maybe some 4 season tent sharing would be in order. BTW, great tent, it's my summer solo w/2 dogs tent.”

“I like snowshoes because I can last longer than I can Nordic skiing. I get my butt kicked pretty quickly whenever I go x-country, I need to find a better way to stay in shape for that particular activity.

I also like the idea of Pyramid Peak, great spot & Desolation in general is one of my favorite locations.

Maybe one of the first things we need to do is determine how strenuous a trip we want to plan. I planned a Desolation trek earlier in the year & prolly did a poor job of letting everyone know the expected level of difficulty. We had a couple BP'ers who were a little surprised at how challenging the trip was. We need to make sure, in a winter situation such as this, that everyone knows what they're in for!”

“I agree, we may want to go for an easy, fun overnighter to
start. If things go well a bigger trip could follow. Maybe the CB trip or some sort of Royal Gorge or hut trip would fit that bill?

Do you have a link to that photopoint page with those DW pictures on it? There were some great shots in there.”

“Hey rockbuck, thanks much for the cool link...great site.

I'm interested, depends on my work scheduial...keep us updated!”

“I wouldn't mind trying some backcountry boarding as well. But yeah, I would definitely like to do some backcountry winter camping action. A hut would be nice for the first time out tho. One description I read about in the Tahoe area was a 3-4 mile hike in to the cabin, which sleeps about 30 people. Sounds like a fun starter trip.”

“Thought I would add this for all the backcountry boarders and skiers...There is a x-c route on Mt Shasta that goes from Bunny Flat to Wagon Camp..it's all downhill, goes for 2 or 3 miles (depending on your route) and drops from around 7000' to 5500'....when you hit the road, you stick out your thumb and usually the next truck will pick you up and take you back to Bunny Flat. Real Yo Yo skiing!

For the backcountry skiers ( to many flat sections for most snow boarders) you can try doing Horse Camp or "The Rain Gauge" to Mc Bride Springs...this one goes for about 4 miles, drops around 3000' and is not really for beginners....it can be steep, depending on your route and lots of folks get lost on this one each year.

Anyone that wants to try some Yo Yo skiing, or just to see some special spots in Lassen Park this winter, drop me a line. I will have "The Tipi" pitched ( with a stove) In Lassen and on Shasta this year for some get togethers....plus it will be at Silver Snag again this New Years, we get anywhere from 15 to 35 folks up with us over a period of a week.

Hope to see some of you in Tahoe........”

“I have very little snowshoeing experience and no experience cross country skiing or winter camping, but it sounds like a fun thing to try.”

“It will be fun. Should we shoot for a date in January?”

“Set a date for a hut trip? January would probably be good, weather permitting, because it's after the holidays.”

“How about one of the 3-day weekends in either January or February?”

“Feb works better for me.”

“Feb works better for me.”

“Either is good, especially around a 3 day weekend?”

“That tipi is pretty cool.”

“Somebody asked awhile back about the pics from the earlier Desolation trip - here's the link to that thread http://www.thebackpacker.com/trailtalk/thread.asp?currentpage=1&threadid=8974#176938

Obi's pics are no longer up, Tommy's still are, so go there if interested.

I vote we pick some dates for Feb & plan around what works for everyone. Feb 8-9-10 or 15-16-17 could work for me.

I can hit a few places beforehand, at least on day-hikes, to check out further. Sounds like some of us have been to a few places, maybe we should do the following:

1. agree on a date
2. List options, then pick a spot

Everyone interested chime in, please...”

“I vote for the 15, 16 an 17th of February.”

“Those dates work for me.”

“I don't want our thread to die without some further action defined. Are we are settled on Feb 15-16-17? Sign in please, and if enough are interested I'll start a planning thread in January. In between, I hope to winter-camp at a number of potential spots in the Desolation area, and off I80, ...let me know if you're interested in joining in!”

“As I said before, I'm in. I'm not familiar with the area, so my knowledge of places is limited. How many miles a day do we plan on going? Will we snowshoe/ski in and set up a basecamp, then hike from there on the second day before heading back out on day three?”

“I'm in for the Feb 15, 16, and 17 trip. I would be interested in more, but maybe it would be easier to tackle that one first?

But, since you brought it up, and the fact I can' resist planning for it (gets me though the workweek better) I would be interested in others before and after. For instance, mtnsteve sounds like he has cool annual thing on Shasta, later in the spring I want to try and summit and ski down that hill. I had also hoped to get some day trips and overnighters at Royal Gorge and Castle Peak, but CB or DW would be great too.

I anxiously await our next move...”

“Here's the thread for the February trip.”

“Here's my marginally relevant contribution to help you keep this thread alive.......
A couple of us are planning a backcountry ski trip up Cache Creek in Yellowstone, probably mid-February. We're going about 8-9 miles in from the Lamar Valley to a thermal area. It's a fairly flat trail with a little bit of climbing at the end. We're toying with the idea of pulling gear sleds in. It may be kind of a Shackleton (south Pole explorer) trip. We won't be starving or sleeping in elk-hide bags, though.”