We decided to give the free snow shoe tour at Crater Lake a try. So, we picked a free Saturday, called and made reservations, secured babysitting, and left early Saturday morning to drive up to Crater Lake.
Uncle Kelly and Grandpa brought their own snow shoes, so they immediately started putting on their gear. The snow was fairly deep at Crater Lake, but the roads were plowed and they were clear most of the way.
Ranger Dave and Alan helped the girls get on their snow shoes. Alan helped me put on mine too.
This is our group as we head off into the forest. It was cold and windy at the beginning, but once we got into the forest there was no wind and the temperature was fairly nice. I even unzipped my jacket and shed my gloves.
The trees were so beautiful with the snow on them. My dad looks small next to them, and just the tops of some of them were sticking out - the rest was buried under the snow.
Leilani and Emilyanne were at the front of the line with Ranger Dave the whole time. I quickly learned that I liked it much better at the back of the line. At the front of the line you were breaking the trail, so you were sinking in the snow and working harder. At the back of the line the snow was packed down and it was much easier!
The lake was so beautiful! It is much different in the winter.
At the end of the hike, Leilani made a game out of falling down and yelling "help" until her dad helped her up. It brought back memories of when I was in outdoor school in 6th grade. We went up to Odell Lake, and part of the experience was learning to cross country ski. We had high school kids accompany us as counselors, and of course some of them were boys. When we went out to ski, me and a friend of mine were at the end of the line with one of the high school counselors bring up the rear right behind us. We kept falling over and having our skies come off and having all sorts of problems - some of it real and some of it imaginary. A lot of it was to get attention from that poor high school boy. After watching my husband's frustration build, I really felt bad for all that we put that poor teenage boy thru :) I'm sure his memories of that trip are not as fond as mine are!
We gathered in circles a few times for Ranger Dave to instruct us (and to rest). We learned about the trees and lichen, the animals, the snow pack and the lake itself. I learned a lot, actually.
It was very fun and very beautiful! We would love to go again. I don't know if we will get there again before May (when they stop doing it until the next winter), but I think we may make this an annual family trip!
Uncle Kelly and Grandpa brought their own snow shoes, so they immediately started putting on their gear. The snow was fairly deep at Crater Lake, but the roads were plowed and they were clear most of the way.
Ranger Dave and Alan helped the girls get on their snow shoes. Alan helped me put on mine too.
This is our group as we head off into the forest. It was cold and windy at the beginning, but once we got into the forest there was no wind and the temperature was fairly nice. I even unzipped my jacket and shed my gloves. 
The trees were so beautiful with the snow on them. My dad looks small next to them, and just the tops of some of them were sticking out - the rest was buried under the snow.
Leilani and Emilyanne were at the front of the line with Ranger Dave the whole time. I quickly learned that I liked it much better at the back of the line. At the front of the line you were breaking the trail, so you were sinking in the snow and working harder. At the back of the line the snow was packed down and it was much easier!
The lake was so beautiful! It is much different in the winter.
At the end of the hike, Leilani made a game out of falling down and yelling "help" until her dad helped her up. It brought back memories of when I was in outdoor school in 6th grade. We went up to Odell Lake, and part of the experience was learning to cross country ski. We had high school kids accompany us as counselors, and of course some of them were boys. When we went out to ski, me and a friend of mine were at the end of the line with one of the high school counselors bring up the rear right behind us. We kept falling over and having our skies come off and having all sorts of problems - some of it real and some of it imaginary. A lot of it was to get attention from that poor high school boy. After watching my husband's frustration build, I really felt bad for all that we put that poor teenage boy thru :) I'm sure his memories of that trip are not as fond as mine are!
4 comments:
Wow! Looks like a lot of fun-- I'm freezing just looking at those pictures:)!
What fun! It looks like a real workout! :) Great pictures!
I wish I could have gone...Darn baby! I enjoyed the story about your outdoor school experience. What a clever little sixth grader you were (watch out, Lani is going to be there in less then a year, ahhh)
P.S. I caught some grammatical errors in there, so stop making fun of me :)
The picture of the lake is gorgeous! It really does look a lot different in the winter. You're so good at giving your family a variety of experiences. It really impresses me.
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