We were supposed to go to Skyline Lake and Ridge today but lot C and D were full just before 9 AM and our group decided to change the destination last minute to Lanham Lake.
The drive to Stevens Pass was definitely not my favorite. There were slushy ice and thin snow on the hwy. Traction tires were advised. The traffic was crazy. I should have known that weekend mornings were the busiest with lots of resort skiers/snowboarders.
We were able to find parking at the Nordic Center, even though there were only very few empty spots left.
I happened to start earlier than the rest of the group and only met 2 groups of backcountry skiers on the way up and 1 group of snowshoers at the lake. It was pretty nice and quiet although it's not really my favorite area to snowshoe (unless the group was planning to go up to Sam Hill or even Jim Hill) 😀.
There's an established bootpath (more like ski tracks) from the trailhead all the way to the lake, so I did not need to do any routefinding. This trail was a bit steep at the beginning and then it steadily gained elevation. The trail also crossed the power line area, and I wasn't a fan of the buzzing sound. Other than that, the trail was mostly in the woods.
Overall, It was a short and sweet snowshoe to the lake, less than 2 miles one way, just perfect for beginners. We got a decent view of the lake but not the mountains.
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