Snowshoe wonderland at Donner Park

Our snowshoe hike on Saturday, Feb. 14, at Donner State Park outside Truckee was beautiful and great fun (even though it was a bit short). Unfortunately many people bailed out on the trip because they were worried about reports of road conditions and snow storms. As it turns out, although it was snowing at the higher elevations on Friday, the roads were well plowed, and it didn't snow on Saturday at all (but a new storm came in Saturday night and all day Sunday).

So we were a party of three for our snowshoe hike on Saturday (Krystyna, Norma, and Bob Colby). Krystyna and Norma drove up on Friday and stayed at Sierra Club's Clair Tappaan Lodge on Donner Pass. Arrived in time for a tasty hot dinner, and then played board games by the huge stone fireplace in the lounge.

On Saturday morning the snow had stopped, it wasn't windy, and it wasn't even that cold. We drove down to Donner State Park near Truckee and met Bob Colby, who led us on a short but awsomely beautiful hike up Schallenberger Ridge. It was only about 3 or 4 hours at the most, but it was fairly strenuous because so much new snow had fallen that we were sinking down into deep power with each step. But the solitude and beauty of the snow covered scenery made it all worthwhile. Hopefully Krystyna's photos and videos will give you a glimpse, and motivate you to come on the next trip. We got back to the Park office/museum by mid-afternoon, with enough time to freshen up a bit in the bathrooms and easily drive back home.



On the trip up, we began seeing snow on the ground just beyond Aurburn at about 3000 ft elevation. Further on, the snow started falling. (Krystyna has 4 wheel drive and snow tires, so no chains required.) When the snow started covering the road, all the cars had to slow down to 25-30 mph. So the trip that could take 2 1/2 hrs under optimum conditions, took about 4 1/2 or 5 hrs. We had no problem except windshield wipers started icing up, making it difficult to see out the windshield. No problem on the trip home Saturday afternoon either, no snow or rain fall, and the roads were clear.

On Saturday afternoon as we were driving home, we could see a new storm front moving in. That storm hit Saturday evening, and the whole Tahoe area was socked in with falling snow and fog for about three days. Looking at the Caltrans web cams on Sunday and Monday, you could see the snow was falling in the upper mountain areas and the cars were moving very very slowly. Looking at the ski resorts, you could watch the skiers out there braving the weather, but it looked snowy, windy, foggy, and cold.