Snow Shelter

Building a snow shelter 
This is a short film showing the construction of a snow shelter. The trip was in the Oregon Cascade Mountains north of Santiam Pass just before Christmas. We hiked in for a few hours in deep snow and arrived at a small lake where we camped and built the quinzhee shown in the film below.

South Sister with Shane, Drake, & Nico

Climbing South Sister is a popular activity in Central Oregon...in the summer. Attempting a summit bid of the 10,358 foot peak in fall is less popular with weather that is less predictable.

Shane & Drake really wanted to give it a shot. We disembarked from Devil's Lake Trailhead and began the 4,900 foot, 5.5 mile climb to the summit.

Trailhead optimism

Our first goal was to get to Moraine Lake. With kids under 12 it's crucial to have the short term goals on a hike. We worked toward reaching each plateau, the next cliff, the knoll. They stay interested and excited.

The boys above Moraine Lake with Broken Top in the background

Comfy in the shelter @ Moraine Lake

The next morning with were greeted with a fall dusting of snow atop South Sister.

The frosty cupcake

We headed up for a day hike summit

The weather, particularly the wind was crazy. While we couldn't summit due to zero visibility and high winds, we did get to a 9,000 foot unnamed peak above Lewis Glacier. I am so proud of the boys for the great hike and adventure we shared.

See the short film of the trip:

Siouxon Creek Watershed (Washington)

A jaunt into the Siouxon Creek Watershed in the Gifford Pinchot National Forest.

The first few days were with several humans and dogs. Bill and sweet folks from Portland made for an awesome time. Nico and I then went deeper into the wilderness and up Siouxon Peak for an overnight and outstanding vistas.