Editor’s note: it is the month of December and for many bloggers it is the season of “Blogmas”. It is a marathon of posting every day for the month of December, often with a holiday theme. For some crazy reason I have dived into this as motivation to clear out some drafts and repost some posts from the last 6 years with a refresh. And maybe a few new stories! This story was originally posted in the early spring of 2019 and refreshing the pictures and “I still remember when…” I had this unique experience. Do you remember the low level snow we received that year? Were you able to get out on some familiar hikes that had become not-so-familiar?
We knew there was an unheard of amount of snow at lower levels and most of us had been shoveling snow of our own driveways for a week.
But there is something about experiencing it on trails that normally never see more than a dusting of snow.
Leaving Chuckanut Drive and making our way up the switchbacks of Blanchard Mountain, a thin layer of snow covered the trail. Nothing to add extra traction devices for but we knew it would be a slick mess on the trip down when things would warm up a bit from the below 30 degrees we were heading up in now.
From here the trail continued to climb and the trees above towered over us dressed in their coats of white. It was when we reached the first viewpoint at 1.25 miles in with its familiar bench seat that things began to take on new perspective. With less than 1,000 feet between us and the bay below, this much snow was utterly unique.
We crossed the junction for the Samish Overlook, the recommended route in for Oyster Dome as the parking is safer and there are more spaces than the narrow shoulder we had left our car on below hoping a snowplow didn’t bury us in while we were away.
When you have hiked a trail before, there are landmarks that you expect to see along the way that help you know how close you are to your destination. This well-known erratic left behind from glacial movement was mottled with snow, causing it to seem less colossal than usual.
A cliff band nearby entertained us with its toothy icicle shards before we continued on as the snow grew deeper and deeper.
Caution signs and geological history stood out more grandly with the monochromatic background of the wintry forest. Something that might otherwise seem so hard to comprehend becomes just a little easier to imagine.
At 3.2 miles in we reached the junction with the Lily Lake Trail and the soft powder was over our ankles. A notice that the Oyster Dome Trail is a year round hike seemed to laugh at us as we turned up for the last quarter mile. “Are you sure?,” it says as I dust the snow away to read it.
As we approached the large slab overlook, we found ourselves plowing mid-calf through a landscape portrait; strokes of muted grey paint jutting out of the snow.
Although the valley had mostly blue skies below, a cloud hovered over Blanchard Mountain obscuring our view for most of our stay at the viewpoint. I didn’t mind, I knew what was out there and it is always enjoyable to watch the blurred features play peek-a-boo.
We had the summit to ourselves and only saw a handful of hikers as we made our way back down to Chuckanut Drive. Yes, it was a weekday but for this popular hike that is not of the norm. I’m sure the weekend will bring more visitors and the trail will become compact and littered with footprints, losing some of its tranquil quality.
The joy is having an experience such as this when the conditions present themselves, something I may not know again on this particular trail. To someone who hasn’t hiked this trail before or lived in the lower elevations of the Puget Sound, this might seem like just another snow day.
But for those of us who call this area home, this is a real treat and transforms an ordinary woodland walk next to the water into something magical.
I will be able to say, “I remember when…” if anyone asks me about hiking Oyster Dome in the winter time. And they may not believe me.
For more details about this hike and an idea of what the view would look like on a “good” day, check out my Oyster Dome page.
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