7.4 miles of hiking • 3000' elevation gain •
The Portland-Vancouver region was in the second week of a very strong inversion. I had just bought a new pair of snowshoes. Silver Star called out for an adventure. And what a great adventure it was! I never could have seen it in this sort of glory without the new toys.
I started at about 1600' elevation, which was about as far as one could reasonably drive in the direction of the Grouse Vista trailhead (about 1000' higher). From there, an old jeep trail leads up a ridgeline, and the snow quickly became rather deep. As I climbed, the air got warmer and warmer. While it was around freezing at the trailhead, by the time I'd gotten up past the Indian Pits it was well over 50°F. What a day!
