Category: snow shoeing

Sierra Canyon Snow Shoe Trip to Matrimony Ridge

I have had a really busy year so far but yesterday I finally got to go on another snow shoe hike with the Sierra Canyon Hiking Group. My last snow shoeing expedition to Andesite Peak on New Years day was wonderful but the trip to Matrimony Ridge yesterday was just as good or better. The book Snowshoe Trails of Tahoe: Best Routes in the Tahoe Sierra By Mike White Has a great description of this trip.

The trail head was near the Kingvale exit off of Interstate 80. We parked under the freeway and snow shoed south about 2.75 miles and 1000 feet of elevation gain. It didn’t seem too hard and the scenery was fantastic. The weather was great too. In fact I was almost too warm.

At the top we sat on some rocks and had lunch before heading down.

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If you would like to see all of my pictures from the trip you can see them here.

Snoeshoeing with the Siera Canyon Hiking Group – Andesite Peak

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Now that we have snow the Sierra Canyon Hiking Group goes snow shoeing every Monday. The people in the group range in age from the early 50s to 70+. We have a lot of fun. Yesterday, New Year’s Eve 2007, we snow shoed to Andesite Peak. The trail head is just north of Interstate 80 at the Castle Peak exit (176). It was a Calendar picture kind of day. The snow was sticking to the trees and each person kept commenting on how gorgeous it was. 

On our lunch break near the top we opened a bottle of champagne and toasted the new year. Thanks Jeff and Linda! That is me in front. We were sheltered and in the sun so it was very pleasant.

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Here we are on top. The wind was blowing but as you can see the views were stupendous.

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On our way down.

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You can see all of my pictures from the hike on Flickr here.

My first time

Duke and I went snow shoeing with the Sierra Canyon Hiking and Snow Shoeing Group Monday. Neither one of us had ever snow shoed before. Our route was generally along Ophir Creek which is southwest of Reno and then south off of the Mount Rose highway near the summit of the road. It was snowing and blowing but in spite of that and the cold we had a great time. I loved it. Just to be outside, in the mountains and to experience the world transformed by the snow was exhilarating. It turns out that snow shoeing is easy and fun.  Here is a picture of Duke and I at our lunch break.

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At one point Linda tried out a Hillside Self Heating Hot Cocoa that I think she said she got at Costco.. It sounds like a great idea for a winter outing doesn’t it? But guess what. The instructions say
"For best results activate at room temperatures (65 and 75 F)".  So much for that idea. After waiting 8 minutes for the hot cocoa to heat up, Walt tasted it and said it was cold! Yuck!

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If you would like to see the rest of my pictures from the hike they are available here on Flickr.