Join the PBR Snowshoe Club!

After dealing with the overcrowded trail at Trillium Lake last week, I was on the hunt for something with a little more solitude for this past weekend. I searched around online a bit and decided on the Ice Cave/Natural Bridges loop, which begins at the Atkisson Sno-Park near Mount Adams in WA.


My smallest friend in Oregon, Carley, got herself a shiny new pair of snowshoes for Christmas and this was her first time out!


After about a mile on the trail, we arrived at an intersection with the short spur trail to the Ice Cave. The crampons on the bottom of our snowshoes were key to descending the snow-covered stairs to the mouth of the cave. We de-snowshoed and got our headlamps rolling. Below is Carley posing pre-exploration. You can see her little snoot on the left.


The Ice Cave is filled with stalagtites and stalagmites of ice! Despite the slick footing, we made it pretty far back into the cave. It was fun to turn all of our lights out and let our eyeballs adjust.


After playing around in the horror movie set, we climbed back out of there to go shoosh around in the snow some more. The snow at this elevation near Mount Adams definitely isn't as nice as the snow at Government Camp, but having the place all to yourself is definitely a decent trade.


Carley climbs out while Tom shoes-up.

We went off-trail for a bit to make some fresh tracks and headed for the Natural Bridges Loop Trail. When we reached the natural bridges, we were starving and in desperate need of a rest. I'd say that a mile on snowshoes is at least two miles on your regular old feet.


We enjoyed some hot soup and flask action.


Carley was bootless so we had to rig up her sneakers.

Tom decided it would be fun to roll a giant snowball down the hill next to one of the natural bridges.


Tom starts small and Carley poses on the bridge.


Everyone is having a ball, hardy har har.


If you think this is big and funny...


Just look at the effort here. :)


1-2-3-ROLL! The grand finale included a giant snowball at the bottom of the snow-covered trench and a round of PBRs at Logs in the little town of BZ Corner.