Nine of us strapped on snowshoes this morning for a hike up the PCT from Snoqualmie toward Kendall Katwalk, planning to 'shoe about 7.5 miles round trip (to the ridge, but not the Katwalk). We discovered the trailhead parking lot isn't plowed, so we found legal roadside parking and headed in. There's about 4 feet of snow right now, so we were amused to read the many trailhead signs warning of wildfires burning in the backcountry...probably not anymore. The PCT trail was nicely defined and well-trod in the snow, making for easy travel. We briefly thought of going one way on the Commonwealth Trail, but dismissed that as soon as we saw there were no tracks cut; we didn't feel like breaking new trail.
Temperature was in the 30s, and we had a light rain most of the way. The snow was fairly condensed and wet on the surface but not mushy, making for good snowshoeing. We did a couple of short bushwhacks to enjoy unpacked snow, but mostly kept to the trail, enjoying the beauty of the snow-covered forest and easily crossing three streams along the way.
As we began the hike, we heard the loud crack of an avalanche cannon, possibly from the ski resort. This turned out to be foreshadowing, as returning 'shoers told us the trail stopped about 2 miles in due to avalanche danger. Sure enough, when we reached the first traverse that exits the forest onto open slopes and boulders, the trail stopped and we could see a recent small avalanche about 100 ft ahead. This was at 3900 ft and N47 25.994 W 121 24.214. A couple of our party went for a closer look, and Craig evaluated the snow, slope, and terrain, and felt we would be okay, but we could see trickier areas ahead, so decided to have some lunch and turn around, as had everyone before us. (Plus, avalanche danger was rated high for the day.)
Still, a very enjoyable 4-mile snowshoe. This is clearly a popular showshoe area, as we saw 20-25 other snowshoers, and one brave XC skier.
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