Winter Ascent of Wheeler Peak - Day One

 Saturday began the grand adventure: a winter ascent of Wheeler Peak, the second tallest peak in Nevada at 13,063 ft. I've climbed Wheeler Peak many times in the summer, including last summer with a group of moms and 7- and 8-year olds. But I've never been up in the winter. I received an invitation to join a group of mountaineers, and it didn't take long for me to say yes. I'm hoping to go to a high, glaciated peak in late summer and could use some more experience with the snow, cold, and high elevations.

Our plan was to hike about 4 miles the first day to the Wheeler Peak campground at 9,820 feet elevation, starting at the parking area at 7,600 feet. The second day we would summit and then return to our vehicles.

Five of us went on the trip, and it was the first time for me to meet them all in person. Michael and I had a similar hiking speed as we went up the trail. About half way we got our first view of Wheeler Peak. It still looked pretty far away!

Here's Michael. We talked some along the way, but the snow crunching under the snowshoes makes a lot of noise and makes it hard to carry a conversation. The snow had really changed a lot in a week, consolidating and melting and forming a crust. In other words, it wasn't very good skiing snow, but fortunately it was fine for snowshoeing.

So what do you need for a two-day winter mountain-climbing trip? I packed quite a few of the same things I had for when we climbed Mount Rainier two years ago. That trip taught me more than I thought it had about being comfortable in the snow. International Mountain Guides, the guide company we went with, has a nice gear list. I added tent, stove, pot, water filter, shovel and subtracted helmet, harness, and carabiners as our hike wouldn't be technical.

As we continued hiking up (we gained 2,200 feet elevation that day), the trees changed from pinyon pine and juniper and mahogany to white fir and then to Engelmann spruce and limber pine, with aspen mixed in.

When Mike and I reached the trailhead, we found Tom and Jodie relaxing. We discussed our plans and decided we would find a place to camp. Our desires: a campsite with a picnic table, close to creek water, and near a bathroom.

Well, we found a campsite with two of our desired things, the picnic table (can you see it buried in snow under the backpacks?) and some running water in the creek. That meant we could easily get water and not have to melt snow. We stomped down our tent sites with our snowshoes and then leveled them with shovels. Before long we had tents set up and the picnic table cleared. It was only 1 p.m. What next?

There was talk of trying for the summit right then, but decided that we probably wouldn't reach the peak until dark, and that didn't sound like fun. But we could go to Stella Lake and make a trail for the next morning's early start.

So Jodie, Mike, and I set out, going through the campground and over the gate that closes the campground.

We checked out the emergency cabin, but the snow is so high outside of it (and the door opens outwards), that it would take a lot of work to get into it (and it's locked). We could see the stovepipe from the wood stove and the wood stacked outside it.

Right next to it is the Wheeler Peak Snotel site, where we had checked on temperature before even starting the trip. The previous two days, it had warmed up to 50 degrees in the campground!

Some skiers had already traveled this way (I'm guessing the previous Wednesday, when I had seen their tracks lower on the mountain). These tracks made it so much easier, as the they had compacted the snow so we didn't sink in as much. Usually snow shoers try to stay off ski tracks, as it really messes them up for other skiers, but with the very limited use up here, we used them.

Before long we got to Stella Lake. See the lake? Ha, it's totally covered with snow! The ski tracks went right across the lake and up the gully, which is the route we wanted to take the next morning.

We enjoyed the beautiful day for awhile, soaking in the sunshine and quiet. Eventually the shadows grew long and we decided we should head back to camp.

Our snowy abode for the night was peaceful, we were the only ones in the campground.

Even though it was only a little bit after 4 p.m., we decided to eat dinner. Soon a bunch of little stoves were going. After I ate my food, I warmed up some water to put into a Nalgene bottle to keep my feet warm at night. That worked great!

We joked that the next time we came up we should bring some hot dogs, as the grill was above the snow! For now, they kept the snowshoes dry.

I didn't really want to go to bed at 5 p.m., even if we were getting up at 3:30 a.m. the next morning, so I wandered around the campground for a little bit with Mike. It was a good way to get warm before climbing into the sleeping bag. I also called my family--it's amazing to have cell service there. It was kind of tempting to just hike down the mountain and go join them in the warm house. But instead I climbed into my sleeping bag along with all my water bottles (so they wouldn't freeze) and various clothing (so it would be warm in the morning), and went to sleep.

The next day would be the big adventure...

Acclimatizing to Snow and Cold

I'm getting ready for a snowy, high elevation adventure this weekend, so I've been trying to get ready for it by spending more time outside in the snow and cold. Last week I took advantage of the fresh snow and went cross-country skiing four times. Twice I went at lunch up the Upper Lehman Creek trail. I was the first one to break trail. I could see the old trail trough, but it was under about 15 inches of fresh powder, so I got a good workout.

I went up from the trailhead 30 minutes, then turned around and skied down my tracks--it only took 12 minutes and was beautiful.

The next day I convinced my co-worker Brooke to come along. We followed my tracks the following day, which had been enhanced by two folks from Alaska who had continued higher. It was just a little bit warmer, but that was warm enough that the snow stuck to our skis on the way back down, making it a little frustrating. Nevertheless, it was great to be outside.

When I got home I thought I'd see how it would be to ski around the house. The roads were packed down and worked out fine. The kids gave a try.

Desert Girl especially stuck with it. She was stumbling all around, getting her skis twisted and falling often at the beginning, but after an hour she was doing great. We might even try to have the kids enter the Ely Birkebeiner on February 20, a cross-country ski race.

Next up was a before-work ski up the Baker Creek road. You can see my long shadow! There were snowshoe tracks, but I was the first skier.

It was so peaceful skiing in the morning.

Eventually I went past the snowshoe tracks, but I found plenty of animal tracks! The birds were also quite noisy.

Then it was time to head to Eagle Point Ski Resort for a Superbowl Sunday ski. It sure cleared out after lunch and we had the slopes almost to ourselves. It was warm, not windy at all, and the snow was great. We put the kids into ski school and my husband and I enjoyed a rare lunch date.

When we picked up the kids from ski school, they were eager to show us what they had learned. They did great! (They were also entertained on the ski lift by taking selfies.)

Another ski run all to ourselves.

Desert Girl was so tired, but she was a trooper, willing to ski until the lifts closed. We can't wait to go back!

And then this week has been some snowshoeing for work. Hopefully I'm ready for the big adventure. Whatever happens, I imagine it will be worthy of a blog post!

Hope you're enjoying winter!

Parowan Gap Dinosaur Track Site

We recently took the road through Parowan Gap, which is north of Cedar City and west of the town of Parowan, Utah. The paved road has a sign pointing out the Parowan Gap Dinosaur Track Site. I was so excited to see that, as years ago I had found information on the Internet about the dinosaur tracks, but hadn't been able to locate them. 

A short road led to a parking area and an informational kiosk. Unfortunately most of the posters in the kiosk were so faded by the sun we couldn't read them. One was about Discover Dinosaur Tracks and Preservation, another about Birds of Prey and Climbing. I had no idea that there was rock climbing nearby, that's something we'll have to go check out sometime.

The BLM has a little information about the dinosaur tracks on their website.  The tracks were made by ornithopods, ceratopsians, and theropods in sandstone of the Iron Springs Formation. The most obvious ones are in large fallen boulders on the valley bottom. You can find a lot more info about the tracks in the Milner et al. 2006 paper.

We followed the trail and found that some of the tracks were quite obvious, jutting out of the boulders.

Soon it was a race to the next track.

The metal track markers were very helpful.

It was chilly and late afternoon, so our visit was quite brief, but we look forward to returning. There is a lot to see in this small canyon. Up next: recent improvements at the Parowan Petroglyph Site.

Fun in the Snow!

 Today it snowed and snowed and snowed some more. There are only about five days each year where I don't see any blue sky, and this was one of them. We've had less snow the past few years, so it was such a treat to see so much snow (even though driving in it wasn't fun at all).

When I got home from work, it was still snowing and I knew we had to go play. How to make it even more fun? Invite some friends to a sledding party at the nearby pond.

The pond is surrounded by small trees. Desert Girl learned that if she stood under them and shook them, she would get covered with snow. She thought this was great fun. (I think this is one of the reasons that it's so fun to be with kids in the snow, they don't necessarily do what you expect!)

The pond isn't very big or deep, but it has small banks and the kids were soon sledding. And me too. I made sure I had my own sled.

Later it was time for a snowball fight (I didn't get any photos of that, as I was a very active participant), and then snow angels.


Then the kids decided they wanted to be buried in the snow. They said it felt warm and comfy.


I pulled the kids part way home. Then I ran out of steam.

So they pulled me!

 It was a nice way to get some fresh air and a little exercise.

Christmas Bird Count - 2015

 It's nearly Christmas, which means it's time for the Christmas Bird Count! Started in 1900, the Christmas Bird Count is the longest-running bird count in the country. It started with a simple idea--instead of going out and shooting the birds, why not count them instead? It caught on, and today over 2,000 places participate in Christmas Bird Counts around the world. They are held between December 14 and January 5, which means you still have time to participate in one! I have a link at the end to help you find your nearest count.

I participated in the Snake Valley CBC on Monday. It was a cold and windy day and not very pleasant to be outside. Nevertheless, the birding was actually decent. I had a new camera lens and had fun putting it to the test. Above, I was happy to see individual feathers on the Dark-eyed Junco.

A Mallard took flight when I got close.

I heard the chattering of the Belted Kingfisher before I saw him. What a hairdo! Or should I say featherdo? I wonder if the tips of his feathers had frozen. He was hanging out at the rearing station, which is full of yummy fish, his favorite food. Smart bird.

Not all the birds are so easy to see. In fact, for quite a few of them I have to peer into bushes and wait for them to move where I can see enough identifying features. (In the summer, I never see about 40% of the birds, I just have to identify them by their songs and calls.) Below you can see the striped breast with a central spot of the Song Sparrow.

I headed up Snake Creek into Great Basin National Park, where the road was snow-covered. Many years I can't go too far up this road for the CBC, but there has been so little snow this year, I just kept going and going.

At one stop I was rewarded with a close-up view of a Red-breasted Nuthatch.

I made it to the end of the road, where I admired the new interpretive signs. It will be fun to head out on those trails next spring and summer.

After I finished Snake Creek I went down to Pruess Lake to see what was out. There was some ice on the lake, but not too much. I saw a bird fly down to a little mud island, and it turned out to be a Northern Flicker.

At the other end of the lake were hundreds of ducks, but the lighting wasn't the best for identifying them.

However, it was fun lighting for getting ducks and their shadows.

And I enjoyed seeing two rows of ducks march.

On Wednesday I went into Ely for their CBC. Here is one of the exotic birds we saw. Do you know what it is?

If you answered emu, you're right! We found three of them plus an ostrich on a ranchette just outside of town.

We didn't find a whole lot of birds, even though the day was beautiful. Nevertheless, it was nice to be outside and enjoying the beauty around us. Here's a Northern Harrier.

Maybe this inspires you to participate in a CBC? There are lots of Christmas Bird Counts left this season, and all experience levels are welcome. To learn more, check out Audubon's website.

Happy Birding!