Full Moon Snowshoeing

I love doing things outside when the moon is shining bright. When I came to visit USU last April, I went on a full moon hike. Since then, I have wanted to something similar again. Shannon, Brandon (her boyfriend), and I tried snowshoeing on 03 January during the full moon but there was insufficient snow to really need the snowshoes or go very far. So I had been looking forward to 02 February - the next full moon.

Newman Club tries to organize at least one activity every Friday night so I decided that I would head up a full moon snowshoe hike. Eamonn and I have tried arranging 3 separate snowshoe hikes during the day and have only had two other people come on two different occasions. Needless to say, we were not holding our breath that we would get a good turn out and were hoping for at least one other person besides ourselves. We even tried spreading the word to our CNR friends (College of Natural Resources).

There ended up being 5 of us that went and we would have had 6 if my friend Amy was feeling well. I think I may have somehow talked Joe and Jake into going by saying how great it is and that it isn't really that hard. In addition to Joe and Jake, Sarah and Eamonn rounded out our group. Only Eamonn and I had been snowshoeing before and it was during daylight, so it was a new experience for everyone.

We drove to where Eamonn and I had snowshoed before as I thought that it would be a good place for beginners as well as provide a good view. It was chilly in Logan when we left but it was downright frigid at Sunrise Campground where we parked. The wind made the cold very bitter and it was not possible to have your hands unprotected for more than a minute and still be able to feel them...made me wonder what the time to frostbite was. However, we were all bundled up sufficiently; I for one was quite glad that I had my winter shell as it blocked the brutal wind.

This time I wore the older pair of snowshoes that Andy has (he's my labmate). Apparently they belonged to a doctor friend of his dad's in Spokane (WA) who did a lot of mountaineering. Awhile back (~10 yrs), the guy was kidnapped in Kashmir (area between Pakistan and India) with a group of people while they were out mountaineering. The fates of only a few of the guys in the group are known - they are dead. One guys head was mailed to his family in Belgium or something. So when Andy told me this story and shortly thereafter mentioned how I can carry on the tradition, it is no surprise that I joked that I would get abducted when I wear them. Luckily I didn't...maybe they are good luck because the guy didn't have them when kidnapped so they are still around.

Anyway, the snow was rather hard and crusty as there was no recent snowfall to provide some powder. Eamonn lead the way and I was sweep to ensure that everyone was okay and together (still a guide at heart...Outing Club and Snapper taught me a lot). Although we had headlamps, we didn't need them once we had our snowshoes on because the moon lit up the landscape so well.

I think that everyone did quite well for the first time snowshoeing even though we didn't go very far. Nevertheless, Sarah left her mark in the form of a snow angel. It is always good to get out and I'm happy that my friends braved the cold and uncertainty of doing a new thing to join me. At one point, Joe headed up part of a ridge and Sarah and I followed (Jake and Eamonn were well ahead, almost to the car). To get back down, we ended up sliding most of the way on our butts...it was awesome! Further evidence that Eamonn and I need to get some cheap roll up sleds before we go snowshoeing again because they would be perfect to go down the steep slopes. Of course, we thought of it the first time we went and have yet to get them...we need to get on that.

After snowshoeing, we enjoyed the warmth of my car and homemade hot chocolate. We dropped Sarah off at the NC then Jake, Joe, Eamonn, and myself went to Beto's for some late-night Mexican food. We were there a long time just talking. I didn't realize till later that it was the same group as the College Bowl...and we do have some good discussions due to our interesting chemistry. It was a great night and I highly recommend getting outside when there is a full moon!