White Pass Nordic Center — Friday, Dec. 28, 2018

What a great snowshoe loop around the frozen and silent Leech Lake up at the White Pass Nordic Center.  Having frequented this lake many times during the warmer months to watch fly fishermen, enjoy the beautiful campgrounds, or access the PCT 2000, it was fun to say hello in a wintry landscape.  The lake loop snowshoe trail keeps you right at the lake's edge and through gentle rolling forest landscapes and even onto a bit of frozen shoreline. 

After spending about 2 hours looping the lake, and which included a brief lunch and lots of stops for pictures, I ventured another 2 hours onto other trails through the forest landscape and by carefully crossing the groomed nordic trails Lake Loop, Corral Loop, and Dog Lake Loop.  The Pacific Crest Trail was indeed tracked, yet I was well into the afternoon hours and I decided to save it for another day. Having hiked some of it last summer I knew I'd need more energy than what I had left in me.

The temperature was about 32F all day, and snow conditions were really nice. Up in the higher elevations it began to snow but near the parking there was just a very light rain towards the end of the day.  The area is so big and diverse that even with a full parking lot there was hardly a notice of others out there today.  That's what I love about this nordic center.  You can experience the feeling that it's all there just for you!

Parking was a breeze as was finding trails.  Everything is clearly marked and easy to navigate.  The provided map is excellent.