Could 2012 possibly end on a higher note? I think not. JK’s coworker, Anil, had expressed an interest in trying snowshoeing, so we drove up to Snoqualmie Pass under clear, blue skies to hike to Kendall Peak Lakes.

Our canine companions for the day were Anil’s gorgeous Border Collie, Ada, and our favorite borrowed Mutt of Unknown Composition, Brutus.

In a cruel twist of fate, we were met at the pass by a wall of clouds. The trail was packed down, so we strapped the snowshoes on our backs and started walking, hoping the clouds were low enough for us to break through them. We hiked and hiked, throwing sticks and balls for the dogs the whole way (because unlike our nutrias, these dogs never get tired), then hiked some more.

At long last, just when it was time to move our snowshoes from our backs to our feet, we popped through the blanket of clouds into a winter wonderland of snow-covered trees and glorious, glorious sunshine. Aaah!

We all agreed that slogging through the clouds made the sun that much more enjoyable. There’s always something special about being above the clouds.

It makes you feel like you’re on top of the world, even when you’re actually on a lowly non-summit right next to the freeway.

It can make a busy ski resort look like untouched wilderness.

It can make a newbie fall in love with snowshoeing, and his dog fall in love with the funny sticks that go with the sport.

It was too beautiful to leave, so we stayed until the peaks (and the pups) were awash in alpenglow and the sun set for the second-to-last time that year.

We descended back into the clouds, smugly congratulating ourselves on spending the afternoon under blue skies while those poor suckers down at Gold Creek Pond were stuck in the desaturated world of grey. Muahahhaa.

Happy New Year from our family to yours. May 2013 find you above the clouds!

This entry was posted on Wednesday, January 16th, 2013 at 10:13 pm and is filed under Hiking, I90. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.