Saw a tiny weather window in the forecast and decided to get up to Artist's Point in the afternoon for some soft light. Arrived about 3ish to a full Heather Meadows parking lot. Geared up and headed out. I was joined by another hiker and we made our way up the trail which was easy to spot. The size and width of it reminds me of the trail made by the Sam the Snowman in the old Rudolph cartoons. It was nicely packed down and snowshoes were perfect for it.
There was quite a bit of fresh snow, untouched and very photogenic. It was "warm" so there was little ice to deal with. Got up to the Point and made my way out Huntoon for more views. Came down by headlamp, sharing my light with a woman snowshoeing down with her baby on her back.
Comments
Bhatkaras on Artist Point Snowshoe
Those are really good pictures, seems like you got good weather. Could you share where did you check for the weather and what did it exactly say? I check the weather here: http://forecast.weather.gov/MapClick.php?textField1=48.8615708517&textField2=-121.682494318 but it may sound stupid but I don’t know how to interpret what’s given there. Or I find it too hard to believe that the weather is always snowy/cloudy/rainy. TIA.
Posted by:
Bhatkaras on Jan 12, 2023 08:57 PM
Weather
That NOAA site is good, but it is broad and can skip over weather windows. It says 5 days of Cloudy but there might be gaps.
So, I also type “mount baker ski area” into google which gives you an hourly report. That is where the windows of Partly Cloudy hopefully show up. Also check the wsdot airport cams for places like Anacortes, skagit or concrete which will show weather heading to Baker.
Hope this helps - Mike
Posted by:
seattlenativemike on Jan 12, 2023 09:41 PM
joyoflandscapes on Artist Point Snowshoe
Great trip report - thank you! I was planning to maybe do a snowshoe up to Artist Point for sunset as well, but curious how easy or difficult it was to get back to the parking lot with headlamp. I'm very used to hiking with headlamp but have never done it on snow. Appreciate any advice. Cheers.
Posted by:
joyoflandscapes on Jan 18, 2023 06:36 PM
seattlenativemike on Artist Point Snowshoe
Thanks! I always bring the brightest lamp I can. The first half of the descent is the most challenging. Bear in mind, the snow might be a bit iced over as the evening cold sets in. Once you get down to the bottom of the steep part, you can go along the ski slope, staying to the edge of course. Often, its firm enough you can just use boots. The ski area is usually closed, but watch for the snowcat groomers. Hope this helps - Mike
Posted by:
seattlenativemike on Jan 18, 2023 08:15 PM
joyoflandscapes on Artist Point Snowshoe
Very helpful. thank you Mike!
Posted by:
joyoflandscapes on Jan 27, 2023 07:57 PM