Playing in a Winter Wonderland: Mount Dickerman

I love winter.  I love the sound that my snowshoes make as they step across an otherwise untouched expanse of fresh powder. I love how pristine the world is during the heart of winter, covered in a blanket of snow, frozen in its place.  During winter, nature seems both desolate and teeming with life, maybe because each tiny sound is amplified, each delicate movement an anomaly.  I love how our everyday surroundings at first seem dark and dismal, but on those clear days, when you’re standing high in the mountains, you get a glimpse of a bright and brilliant universe.  But most of all, I love how the silence grips the landscape, and creates a sort of forced reflection.

The pack and I recently headed out to the Mountain Loop Highway in an attempt to summit Mount Dickerman. We almost made it to the top before darkness settled in and forced us down (we were kicking ourselves for not bringing our tent!).  It didn’t help that we got a late start.  As soon as we arrived at the trail head, we spent nearly an hour helping a young gentleman get his Toyota Corolla out of the snow.  It’s times like this that I’m just so grateful I have a Subaru!  But no matter.  After roughly 3,000 feet of elevation gain and a set of never ending switchbacks, we reached a plateau with panoramic views that made the entire trek worth it.  The dogs were in heaven playing in feet of fresh powder.  And guess what?  Hiking down after dark, with only our headlamps to guide the way, might have been the best part of the entire trip.