Tons of snow! Snowmobile ride to Bonney Meadows and more.

Almost a foot of fresh snow fell this weekend around Mt Hood. My friend Jordan and I drove up to Frog Lake SnoPark for a fun day of snowmobile riding. I was sure just how much snow had fallen in the area, but I was pleasantly surprised when we arrived at the snopark Sunday morning. I nearly got my truck stuck parking, due to how much fresh snow was on the ground.

There were a few other snowmobilers around, but nowhere near as many as I anticipated. We set off down the trail past Frog Lake towards Bonney Meadows. there was way more snow than when I was up two days ago. I was worried as we dropped in elevation at the junction of road 43 and 48 (around 3,000' elevation) that the snow would disappear. Luckily it did not. It was thin, but still enough to ride on (barely).

   

As we rounded the corner on road 48 to turnoff for 4890 to Bonney Meadows the snow started piling up again with about 18" on the trail. By the time we made it to Bonney Meadows, there was 2-3 feet of snow on the ground. There was another group of snowmobilers when we arrived at Bonney Meadows. They were the only ones we saw all day.

   

From Bonney Meadows we headed up towards Badger Lake. The battery in my goggles was dead and they started fogging up real bad. We decided to turn around because the steep terrain was too dangerous for me to ride blind through. It was 3-4 feet deep at this point. Amazing how we went from nothing to this in a matter of days.

We headed further east on gentler terrain where the snow was still several feet deep. I had Jordan break trail so I could have something to follow as I tried to clear my goggles up. They finally cleared up enough for me to enjoy riding through the powder as it was flying over the hood of the snowmobiles and into my lap. I love when the snow is deep enough to hit me in the face.

   

By the time we got back to Frog Lake we had logged over 66 miles of riding. What a day! My fingers are crossed that this season continues to get better.

Gear List

2014 Polaris 800 Pro RMK Snowmobile
2013 Polaris 800 Switchback Assault Snowmobile
Echo CS-271T chainsaw
HMK Summit V16 Pack
GMAX GM76X Helmet
Smith Phenom Turbo Fan Goggles
Columbia Men’s Bugaboot Max Electric Boots
HMK Hustler 2 Snowmobile Pants
Columbia Titanium Hightail II Softshell Jacket
HMK Cascade Snowmobile Jacket
Columbia Powerfly Down Puff Jacket
Head Digital Sport Liner Gloves
Outdoor Research Ambit Gloves
Columbia Men's Fast Trek Fleece Hat
Balaclava
HighGear ATF8 Altimeter

Petzl TIKKA XP 2 Headlamp
Olympus Tough TG-1 Camera
Lifeline Aluminum Sport Utility Snow Shovel
First Aid Kit
SPOT Gen3
Samsung Galaxy S5 w/BackCountry Navigator
Suunto A-10 Compass