Winterfest 2005

“Hey Peppergod, this will be my first snow-camp out and I'm game... maybe you should consider one night and see how it goes??? Just listening to Trailbum and Mtnsteve and looking at the pics has me excited! Everyone had a great time last year even with crazy conditions. This year is going to be awesome!!”

“Rodney is still working on his "game" ...he won't say exactly what it is yet, but he asked me where he could get those little bottles of booze they use on airlines.

It's some kind of treasure hunt/poker run/geocache thing....I think....sorta”

“Ohhh...Hot Damn, Jello (lime Green of course) snow cones!”

“geez, after just reading about this trip and seeing the snow pictures, i have to go outside and warm my bones in the hot tub.....and its only 54 degrees out there!”

“I received my Backcountry Permit for Lassen just the other day, so I'm pretty much ready to go. Well, I haven't decided yet on what to stock in the liquor cabinette, but I've got some ideas.”

“I must admit that I agree with Pepperdog about the tent thing, I hate being confined to a tent in the snow. Tents are cold, cramped and wet or frosty. Give me an igloo anyday, even a "snow coffin" or tarp over a snow block enclosure is better, something in which I can wear my boots and walk in and out at will. An igloo is much warmer and drier than a tent, answering that late night call is no biggie and you don't have to pack it up wet when it's time to leave.
http://community.webshots.com/photo/213082684/213083573qpnXBN
last edited: 11/07/04 1:26:13 PM”

“re: little bottles of booze - I have seen them at Longs but they are pricey.

My other concern is getting a dog sitter. My roommate will be in Mexico over that weekend so she is out...”

“Well, I discussed New Year's options with the family, and I/we will not be coming to Winterfest this year. Instead, we're going here. Still should be fun, though!”

“We just got back from Loon Lake. "I'm hot" was heard a lot more than "I'm cold." And I couldn't keep Jerry awake to chat with me even though we were in the tent before 7PM. His comment: "It's good to catch up on sleep once in awhile."


BowlderMan, that looks like an awesome place. I looked at the winter gallery photos, pretty extreme.”

“Damn your eyes! I've been wanting to use Tioga Pass Lodge as a jumping off point for an extended winter trip into Yosemite, possibly crossing over and exiting Yosemite Valley.”

“I stayed there for 1 night in February, after which me and my buddies camped out at Ellery Lake (overnight low = 0 degrees). It's a cool place, and, indeed, lots of people use it as a starting point for longer trips, even trans-Sierra ones. Oh, and despite the "extreme" photos there, there's a ton of mild terrain that will be appropriate for me, BowlderGal, and BowlderSon....”

“We'll be thinking of ya. I will personally offer a toast to you and your family, perhaps several toasts.....yea, I think so.”

“Excellent! We'll step outside, face north, and have a toast, too!

Then we'll head over to our cozy warm cabin, wake up New Year's morning, take a hot shower, have a big honkin' pancake breakfast, then go out and ski all day. Not that there's anything wrong with that winter camping thing.... :-)”

“Gee Lady Hiker, will you really show up.

From a Friend. ;)”

“I just finished getting my Loon Lake snowshoe photos up on Webshots. Lassen last year was probably 20 degrees colder than Loon Lake and there was a whole lot more snow, but this still gives a taste of what snowshoeing and snow camping look like.

http://community.webshots.com/album/214151579IXcvoz?694”

“Beautiful pictures wannabp!! Looks like you all had a blast. Kinda looks like "Spring" conditions...those are THE BEST...working on your tan, skiing in shorts.......”

“Yeah, there wasn't a ton of snow and it was basically pleasant outside. Not like Winterfest 2004's blizzard.”

“Recommend snowsaws for ice block construction (igloos, snow-coffins, kitchens and furniture). I have a few but I suggest people buy or make their own. I can provide a simple sketch and you can make one with a piece of aluminum, a hacksaw, pliers and a file. Anybody? anybody?”

“Some of the snow-shovels, like some models of the Life-Links, have a saw that you can extract from the handle. If anyone is looking for a snow-shovel & think they will be building igloo's, it might be worthwhile to check these out.”

“TrailBum is a master at snow shelters, anyone that wants to learn this art would find it to their advantage to bring some tools. Most folks are aware how important a good shovel is, a snow saw in the right hands can build amazing shelters.”

“In case you didn't catch this thread.

http://www.skipulk.com/”

“I'm gonna try like the Dickens to make this trip, so far no businees stuff appears to be in the way, and, as usual, all the well-wishes I need from the Better Half!”

“Hey, Steve, is 44 between Manzanita Lake and Susanville open in the winter? We may be coming to Winterfest from Tahoe.”

“Happy Turkey Day to you Wanna & LScaper!

I've been stuck :( on both 36 and 44 from Tahoe, BUT... I think it depends upon the year & how much snow there is / isn't. I have a good friend who works in upper mgmt for CALTRANS here in Sac, the stories he tells about which roads they do or don't take care of sends shivers up your spine!! No logic... lots of politics!

I think what I'm saying is "no guarantee's", at least that's my experience.”

“Hey wannabp, like wanderer says, no guarantee, but I've only seen it closed a couple times in the last several years....and that was only for a day at the most, usually for about 4/6 hours.. They usually keep it open, unless it's one Hell of a storm.

wanderer, hope you can make it.


It looks like Rodney will be coming in with me on Thursday night and leaving on Sunday....we usually are up there for a week or so, but both of us have new jobs and must adjust accordingly. I may try and get off a few hours early on Thursday...we'll see.”

“Steve,
I am planning on coming up Thursday. Is that a bad idea if you aren't even going to be there until that night?”

“Sandy..I don't think you will have a problem. The trail is rather straight forward and as long as you camp in the general area we will find each other easily enough. If you have a GPS I can give you the coordinates......or just camp at Silver Snag and we will find you.

I hope to be in the parking lot about 5:00 at the latest, perhaps sooner (3:00pm?) It might be nice to have someone break trail for us ;-) Last year the sleds weighted close to 100lb each, plus the gear we carried on our backs. .... The trip up to camp, in deep, fresh powder, around and under downed trees, took us 4 hours to go 2 miles.

There may be others coming in earlier too. We will know more as we figure out everyone's schedules.

Snow level is around 3000' right now...I may run up to Silver Snag tomorrow just for giggles :-)”

“Things are always changing. Now we will be coming up hwy 5 to Redding instead of from Tahoe.”

“Hey Karen, I was just reading this book about how to stay young. One of the messages was to learn to "roll with the punches", so-to-speak, and accept / plan that things will ALWAYS change!

Thought you'd enjoy!!!”

“wannabp...my partner use to say..."If you want to make God laugh, just tell him what your plans are".

I just got home from a blast up to Silver Snag. Beautiful day, even if it was a tad cloudy at times. I am putting a trail Beta together with pictures I took today. I'll post it later.”

“Steve I am assuming that we will need to melt snow for our water, correct? I just want to be able to plan for fuel quantities. Anyway, let me know if my assumption is incorrect.

Starting to get psyched for this gathering. heh heh

nihilist
last edited: 11/28/04 2:39:19 AM”

“Most folks melt snow for their water. Manzanita Creek is a short ways away, but getting to the creek can present a problem, although the cord around a water bottle works well...just go fishing for it :-)

The stove in the Tipi always has a pot on it for water, so getting water at night is easy enough.


I just started working on the trail beta, it's actually kinda boring (just a trail) but it does show almost the whole trail up to Silver Snag (very few captions right now) . I didn't think about it until I was most of the way through the campground, so it starts just past the little store. If you view the album as a slide show it should be in chronological order. If you are using dial-up, this could take the better part of a month, but I am working on smaller file sizes for the pictures to speed things along.

We're getting kinda pumped about it around here too :-)”

“Mtnsteve - Thank you for the walk in the woods! Can't wait to get out there! (What a treat to have cable modem.. don't have to take a nap between pictures!)

I'm planning on coming down on the 31st in the morning. Who is coming in at the same time? Maybe I can meet up with someone and walk in? Wannabp?”

“I plan on going out on the 30th. A friend of mine is flying in to Redding and I will hike back out and drive down to pick him up. I am not sure what time he plans on landing but if it is around the same time we can walk with you...?”

“We were thinking of hiking in on the 30th. Will anyone else be there that night?
Ladyhiker, we can hike out on the 31st and connect with you if need be. It's not that far, and we will be needing to move around to keep warm.”

“Wannabp...Rodney and I will be going in on the evening of the 30th.”

“See ya on the 30th, then.

I posted this on the Loon Lake thread, too. Jerry and I will be in the Donner Summit area on Sunday, 12/19. We'll be either snow shoeing or cross country skiing while our son and his girlfriend snow board at Sugar Bowl. Anyone interested in meeting up with us for a Loon Lake/Winterfest warm-up day?”

“What is the time frame for going in on the 30th? Maybe I'll try to get out early...”

“What is the time frame for going in on the 30th? Maybe I'll try to get out early...

Mtnsteve... Hot Damn works great for sore throats... wait.. I can't feel my throat! See? works great! uh oh.. can't feel my lips either..... Will defintely need to stock up before New Years!
last edited: 11/29/04 9:48:18 PM”

“Ladyhiker03...
Not sure about the others, but Rodney and I are heading in about 5:00pm, perhaps earlier.

The medicinal uses of Hot Damn are yet to fully explored...perhaps some research is in order?”

“Hot Damn has lends one the ability to signal those Martians on Mars...When Mars was visible to the naked eye, my friend and I were at Peeler Lake in the Hoover Wilderness. I thought I was flashing my light at campers atop a hill....except they kept getting higher in the sky until eventually, they were always above us. Doh! Too much Hot Damn :o)”

“Must do more research......”

“Mtnsteve, 5:00 PM? In the dark? You'll definitely see Martians.

Ladyhiker, we don't have a set time, just thought the 30th was day one. I'd prefer arriving at the camp site with time to set up the tent in the daylight.”

“I am planning on arriving sometime around noonish at the park on the 30th. I certainly wouldn't mind having someone to walk in with.”

“I just joined! See you all there!”

“I'll be coming in on the 30th also. However long it takes me to drive from Seattle is when I'll be there. It should take about 10 - 12 hours to get there and I don't know for sure when I'll get away. If I leave on the evening of the 29th, I might get in to the silver snag before dark. Also, if it is snowing hard I may not try to come in after dark unless I happen to see Steve and Rodney. Well, we'll just have to see what happens.

nihilist”

“I'l really looking forward to meeting all the new folks and seeing the rest of you again. This is shaping up to be a great New Years.

nihilist....you just may win our award for longest distance traveled to attend.

Well, OK, we don't have an award for that. Perhaps we should. Let me work on that.

I'll give out some phone numbers to those that want them, work, cell and home. Those that are coming up on the 30th can call if you think you will be passing through Redding near 3:00/4:00pm. I will be leaving right from work (30th) and Yates is less than a mile off Hwy 44.

We are getting more folks signing up, many from the other boards. As more folks figure out their schedules and times, perhaps we can arrange for pooling or meeting times for those that may be want to head in with someone else.

Those of you with GPS's may want to bring them...I will be stashing some "items" on my next couple trips to Silver Snag. I'll give out the coordinates later.”

“Sandyann, that's a possibility. We haven't decided for sure if we will drive up on the 29th or the 30th. If we come up on the 30th, noonish is optimistic. Are you driving up from the Bay Area?

Welcome, Hikerchic!”

“I just did something that I haven't done since my early 20's...... (No... not that!) I asked for a day off! I'll be coming down the 30th. So, all I need to do now is stock up on the Hot Damn! (Ltest update on the sore throat.....it has disappeared.. uh oh.. I think I'm invisible!)

I'll check on the drive time from Eugene to either catch Wannabp or else stop by Steve's work and dazzle his boss with exciting topics such as 1) 2004 tax law as it applies to backpackers 2) 1099 requirements for outdoor guide services 3)Income reporting requirements for rock climbing, and if he is still awake, I'll review entity choices...... zzzzzzzz.. (MtnSteve - be packed and ready, by the time he wakes up, it will be long past closing time)”

“I am driving up from Livermore on the 30th. I am expecting it to take about 4 hours from my house to Lassen. So if I leave around 7 am I will be up there by 11:30. Or I could leave earlier as I am open to a time. I just really don't want to do the walk at night.”