Edith Creek Basin Snowshoe, Panorama Point Snowshoe — Sunday, Jan. 13, 2013

Mount Rainier Area > SW - Longmire/Paradise

I post this report to remind everyone how quickly weather can move in on the mountain. The shots below represent a difference of about 15 minutes. Luckily, today brought only shifting clouds (not snow), and we found our way back down without incident (not to mention getting some awesome shots! See: http://www.flickr.com/photos/51278183@N05/sets/72157632529304927/). But check the weather and be prepared! We hiked up Edith Creek Basin and got 2/3 of the way up the last, steep hill below Panorama Point when the clouds came in and compromised both visibility and our balance. Traversing a steep slope with nothing visible but the snow beneath you and swirling clouds around you is very dizzying. While I found this immensely fun, my husband did not. He's smarter about these things, so we headed down. It actually got so hard to see we decided to go back the same way as it's a broader track. It turned out being fine, and we had no troubles, but I suppose better safe than sorry. As compensation, he let me sled a lot when we got back to the parking lot.