Snow Bowl Hut Weekend - 2020.02.08

MTTA SnowBowl Hut: Day One

We were invited to go snowshoeing with a very good friend to a snow hut managed by Mount Tahoma Trail Association (MTTA). They have two yurts and two huts - High Hut and SnowBowl Hut. We went to SnowBowl Hut.

The plan was to meet Sue at Cottage Bakery in Eatonville, Washington at 9am. Great coffee and pastries if you are ever in town. To avoid a long three hour drive from our cabin we stayed at my mom’s house only 50 minutes away the night before. That was a great decision!

Flood warnings and road closures were a concern. Heavy rain and snow melt was causing havoc around the Mt. Rainier communities. On our way up we went around a road closure sign and crossed a section of road that had water running across it. Fortunately the water wasn't too deep, safe enough to cross.

The sixteen person group of us eventually made it to the trailhead and had to wait for Bob to finish plowing the parking lot before we could park. It was a nice snowing day and we were going to a hut, so, patience and good spirits were high. In typical fashion, me and Deborah were last to start. The trek is only three miles and we wanted to take our time to enjoy the snow.

Photo Gear Complications.

This trip I decided to us my LumeCube light on my camera instead of my flash. It is waterproof and would give me some light. Not as good as a flash unit and frustrating at times, but at least it’s a light. I think I may switch to my Light Motion instead next time because it gives off better light than the LumeCube does.

The nice feature of the LumeCube is the accessories that snap to it with a magnet. One of which fell off and I had to backtrack all the way to the truck to find it in the parking lot. Can’t walk around with accessories attached - Lesson learned.

The second issue I had was dropping my Fujifilm XH-1 with the lens off. The camera fell face down in the snow, filling the inside. After pulling and brushing the snow from all the inside crevices, I had to do the unthinkable and wipe the sensor dry. Scary! The camera worked but would not turn off so I had to pull the batteries out and put them back in to shoot. The next day everything was working normal with the only problem being the sensor with the lens at f/8 or smaller.

Snowshoe Consequence.

We have a pair of 1999 Crescent Moon Gold 9 snowshoes that continue to work great. What we have changed for winter travel is switch to a pair of NEOS Navigator 5 overshoes with studs. They have replaced snowshoes for about 90% of our snow travel. For the most part, their design eliminates the need for snowshoes.

Since we were with a snowshoe group, we felt obligated to wear ours. After getting a blister and realizing they were completely pointless on this groomed handpicked trail, the snowshoes came off and we were happy hikers again.

Full Snow Moon 2020

If I had heard of the Full Snow Moon before it was deleted from my memory for some unexplained reason. One thing is certain, I learned about the Snow Moon tonight. Its name is due to the heavy snowfall that tends to fall in February. This moon is also called the Hunger Moon because of poor hunting during this time of year.

The clouds mostly faded and the landscape was beautifully lit by the moon. Made for a special night to experience.

Full Snow Moon lights up the landscape under Mount Rainier.

Some Photos From Day One

Not in any particular order.

MTTA SnowBowl Hut: Day Two

What a morning!

The full Snow Moon was setting as the sun was rising and the melting morning clouds shared a peaceful atmosphere. All of us were in awe and wonder. It was going to be an amazing day.

My camera dried enough to work properly again so I was able to capture a few emotions. Breakfast was enjoyed, hut was cleaned, and soon our group was standing with our snowshoes on ready to walk down the trail. Me and Deborah once again left last with plans to visit High Hut.

During the walk out we decided to skip High Hut this trip and went back to the trailhead. The drive out was uneventful and we made it back to Beaverton at around 7pm. Not an epic finish compared to the rest of the weekend but we have a lot of great memories.