Artist Point Snowshoe — Monday, Dec. 23, 2013

North Cascades > Mount Baker Area

For snowshoers of all levels, Artist Point offers a beautiful setting to head off on an established trail or blaze your own in the abundant powder. I like that it's so open and you can head in any direction, staying among others or getting away from everybody. I was fortunate to get a relatively early start after my 3 hour drive from Kirkland, leaving the ski area parking for the trail before noon. There were already many sets of tracks; if your destination is Artist Point or Ptarmigan Ridge, you set out in the same direction -- follow the right (western) boundary of the ski area up, sometimes steeply, until you leave it behind. Be mindful of the skiers and boarders, as sometimes they can go a little wide and out of their area. Keep dogs and kids close by, too. You'll see trails peeling off in various directions. One set generally follows the longer road path, others head straight up the incline with precipitous switchbacks cut into the snow. Choose your workout -- long and gentle or short and steep. Then it's up to you how far you want to go. Once you come to the apparent ridge and Baker is in front of you to the south if it's a clear day, you can head to the left (east-ish) to Artist Point, or to the right to Ptarmigan Ridge. I opted to go left toward Mt. Shuksan. My Boston Terrier and I made our way; as we climbed, the shaded north side of the ridge was in the upper 20's and my dog was getting a little cold. Plus the clouds were mostly obscuring Shuksan, so just before we reached the Point, we decided to turn back and call it a day. The snow was great; a medium powder that I sunk about a foot into when making a new trail. With just the top of the restrooms appearing at the unplowed parking lot at Artist Point, I figure there's a least an 8-10ft. base of snow. Folks were happy to be spending their holiday time up there. The road to the ski area is fine though slick in a few spots.