Yurt Snowshoe, The Yurt, Snow Bowl Hut Snowshoe, Bruni's Snow Bowl Hut, High Hut & High Hut Snowshoe — Sunday, Mar. 24, 2024

We had a lovely weekend at the Tahoma Yurt and made a side trip partway up Griffin Mountain. This is the second time we have been lucky enough to secure reservations for one of these and hope to someday visit them all. The video is our full adventure that shows a little of everything. The first link at the bottom shows  a full tour showing what is in every drawer, at least this year and the third shows just a very quick spin around the Yurt.

The trail conditions were very mixed and will likely be constantly changing over the next couple of weeks, but we found about 25% of the trail totally bare on the way up but also areas that required snowshoes (more below). Not much of a view due to the weather but the road was snow free all the way to the upper parking area and we didn't get rained on, so great success! 

Road/Parking: Dirt road that was overall in great condition, but had some sizable potholes in areas and some bumps. Most areas were big enough to maneuver around and had room for passing, except one long narrow bridge that had pretty rough spots on both ends that were unavoidable. We lucked out with no snow and were very grateful for that. The lower lot is smaller and has a pit toilet but we didn't check if it was open. The upper lot is fairly big and about 1 mile/600ft further, which saves a good bit of hiking, but is fairly steep, so coming down in the snow would be frightening. Download an offline map because the signage coming in is pretty clear if it is not snow covered, but there are a few turns and getting out can be confusing. 

You need a $50 annual pass to stay the night, no grooming adder required, per my email from MTTA. 

Trail:  Overall it kept switching between bare ground and snow, making for an annoying choice of switching on and off snowshoes or spikes or just pushing through until the next bare section. We were also towing a sled which glides nicely on snow, but not so much on rock and further complicated things, but it went alright. You could probably do it without them but I would definitely bring snowshoes, but be prepared to carry them. It is always good to have a map, but the signage on this trail is really good. 

Parking to High & Snow Bowl splits: Only saw a couple of other groups. Mixed snow and bare ground, pretty much just a logging road with very little views, but lots of trees and water features along the road. At the high point just before the Snow Bowl there was a clearcut area with a small viewpoint and some flags that was cute. 

Split to Yurt: More of the same with more bare stretches and a couple more mini-viewpoints in cut areas. From the high point on there was only a tiny bit more climbing. Just before the yurt there was another cut viewpoint which had a road going down from it. It looked like a convenient potential sunset/sunrise spot if the weather was nice. 

There was a Lower Yurt Loop Trail that were were curious about but didn't explore. We talked to someone else who said it was a road for about half and more of a trail for the other half, so definitely more difficult with a sled, but doable in their opinion. No major views, but a change of scenery. 

Griffin Mountain: We only went a little over a mile, until we hit a stream that had cut the snow deep enough to make it a challenge to cross. We needed snowshoes the entire time. The first mile was quite nice and worth the effort. There was a pretty peak above us with a very steep cliff on one side giving it an impressive form and around a mile there was a viewpoint where we could see lots of distant mountains with a storm brewing and some cool rock formations to our left that were catching the light just right. 

There was one tree down just past the lookout but it was no issue. We were told that there is a road the hooks around the back and has a view of Rainer on a nice day, but the weather didn't look like we would see much so we didn't go that far. 

Yurt Stay: These places are so thoughtful with some of the greatest touches! For where they are, this takes glamping to a whole other level. The feel reminds me a bit of the love and care that goes into the fire lookouts but much more full featured. Like the fire lookouts, these are open to the public for everyone to enjoy during the day. You need to bring a sleeping bag, all your food, winter gear, and pretty much everything else is there waiting for you. There is a full book of how everything works and how to clean up for the next person before you leave. 

Yes, it is still rustic. You get your own water and need to be sure to leave plenty for whoever comes next. You are all sleeping/eating/recreating in one shared public room on some basic mattresses, but you have heat, a stove, oven, solar powered lighting, filtered water, a stocked toilet, cupboards full of dishes, utensils, games, and much more. There was one bunk bed and two futons (one split into 2 single beds and the other made one full. I think there were also a couple of sleeping pads in case you didn't want to share or have a bunk, but we didn't check them out. 

Amazing little touches like slide on boots (up to size 13) for venturing to the bathroom and a few pairs of slippers for indoors. Books, puzzles, maps, and holiday decor. Log books full of art and stories and room to add your own (We added to the story of Ernie the Rat King and Tod and can share if anyone is interested :-D). The bathroom was a pit toilet but a beautiful one with its own art, motion light, and reading materials. 

Someone built a fun igloo outside and we met the caretaker, Brian, in the morning, who had visions of starting an annual snow igloo village up there that each guest could add-on to throughout the season. 

Tip: Make sure to bring extra clothes in case your's don't dry. There is the heater, but things can get a bit damp with all the winter gear, cooking, and just people breathing, so my clothes did alright, but my shoes didn't dry all the way even after being in front of the heater all night.

Stats: Upper Parking to Yurt ~5.3 miles, 1700 ft elevation gain/700 ft loss, 2.74 hours moving time. Yurt to Upper Parking ~5.2 miles, 700 ft gain/1700 loss, 2.25 hours. Griffin Exploration ~2.3 miles, 300 ft gain/loss, 1.25 hours. 

More Information on this Trip Report

• https://youtu.be/w7aiywJObxQ
• https://youtu.be/G5JDuN_M2h8