Snowshoeing to Twin Lakes, Oregon

My Grandpa, Katie, and I snowshoed to Twin Lakes yesterday. Twin Lakes are a pair of hike in lakes near Frog Lake about 8 miles SE of Government Camp, Oregon. Our dog Bella joined us outfitted with her own boots. This was my Grandpa's first time snowshoeing. It was a beautiful day with the temperature right near freezing with cloudy skies. We were the first ones to Frog Lake SnowPark at about 7:30 AM. The hike was about 1.5 miles uphill along the Pacific Crest Trail and then 0.5 mile down to Lower Twin Lake (the bigger of the two). It only took us 75 minutes even with me hauling my gear sled. Area map.

   

Since I hauled my chainsaw on my pulk sled (Paris Expedition Sled) we were able to cut and chop plenty of wood to have a very nice campfire. I had Katie and Grandpa dig out the fire pit while I finished the chopping.

   

   

Grandpa and I started an igloo, but didn't get that far. The snow was not quite wet enough to make good blocks. And to make matters worse, one of my tote bins cracked and was no longer usable. While we were working on the igloo lunch was cooking around the fire. Nothing beats warm soup on a cold day.

   

We saw quite a few other groups of people out for the day. Everyone liked our campfire and those more friendly stayed a few minutes to enjoy. One friendly grouped took some pictures of us.

The lake was covered in snow and my curiosity got the better of me. I stepped onto to lake near the edge and sunk a couple inches into slush. Not as bad as it could have been. I dug down and realized there was about a foot of ice/snow mixture covering the surface. It was strong enough to support my weight on the edge of the lake, but I was not willing to venture out any further. Maybe it will freeze harder as the winter goes on so I can try my hand at ice fishing.

   

Before leaving I put a chip in my hand to see if the numerous Gray Jays would eat out of my hand. To my amazement after a little coaxing they came right in, landed on my hand and had a nice snack. They made a nice addition to our trip.

Before we left, it started snowing. Our tracks quickly softened and the fresh snow helped keep my pulk sled's speed at a manageable level. We made it back at a leisurely pace in about an hour. The empty parking lot we had left had filled up while we were gone. It was a great trip and one my Grandpa will remember for awhile.