It is a Happy New Year and start it with your snow dances!! La Nina fizzled and now we are in a neutral winter season. I just call it dark and wet. After reading up on weather perceptions, and how individuals view seasons over a span of time, I've decided this individual considers this winters beginning an insult to those of us who like snow and plenty of it. Maybe we had our expectations set too high after last season? Get on up and ski when you can, you might find it is a bit better then you may have thought. On New Years Day the Palouse to Cascades State Park Trail was zippy and trees were snow covered.
New this season is Franklin Falls Sno-Park. Exit 47, and this is the road heading up to Denny Creek Campground. The campground has ample area for snow play and there is a marked trail to the the view of Franklin Falls. The trail down to the bottom of the falls is closed due to avalanche hazard. Please have traction devices in your car just in case you need them for the road. It gets dark in there, maybe add a headlamp to your winter car kit in addition to your flashlight.
Gold Creek is open as usual this season and will continue to be next winter. Also this season, the bridge that was barely hanging on where Coal Creek is crossed before heading up Kendall Peak Lakes road is fixed.
As many of you may know, basically there is no free parking anywhere on the pass this winter. State Route 906 has designated parking along the road which is free. Sno-Parks require a permit (someone has to pay for the plowing, sani-cans and grooming) and The Summit at Snoqualmie started a parking fee for those who do not have a ski pass or day ticket. If you want to sled / tube, give their sledding hill a try. Please do not park in the I-90 interchanges. It is illegal.
Ski For Light has their first event of the season tomorrow out of Erling Stordahl and there may or may not be set track for side by side skiing. There isn't really enough snow to have normal tracks. The groomer operators are doing their best.
I pulled the snow word cloud above from:
May 15, 2019 by Goldstream Group, Inc.
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