Looks like a face – An Angel?

Snow Angel

“Snow shoeing?  In the snow?  I am escaping winter.  Why would I want to go to the snow?  They have feet of snow.” Joel exclaims in dismay.

“You have to.  What could be cooler than snow shoeing at Mt Rainier?  It’s a national park. Who wouldn’t want to do that?”  I replied. “Besides, we need our stamp.”  The good old passport stamp.  It’s a bit hokey but it gets you to the outer limits of parks and keeps you going when you might opt for less strenuous relaxation.

It snows at Mt Rainier over 100 feet of snow a year.  The record is a few inches shy of 120 feet in a single season.  It’s incredibly beautiful, rugged and an adventure in snow travel.  Chains required.  Road open 9-4pm.   Don’t be on the other side of the gate when they lock it or you better have a sleeping bag.

We hiked, saw hot pots, historical shelters and meadows of snow.   We photographed ice crystals.   We viewed the mountain glacier in its freshly painted white.  It was framed by the baby blue sky and stands of tall evergreens.  We headed up the mountain, chains attached.  Higher and higher we climbed, exclaiming as the snow walls grew ever taller.  We marveled where the road signs had been excavated from the banks.  There were few visitors, enough to feel safe but never overwhelmed.  We snow shoed the trail in isolation.  I made a snow angel and looked up to see an angel formed of snow in the tree.  It was sunny and mild, alone on the trail experiencing the grandeur all around.

Unforgettable experience.  The term that escaped my lips?  Profoundly simple and absolutely true, “Hello God” and “Thank you.”

I pray that no-one destroys our beautiful park system.  I promise to do what I can to honor the earth, to protect this beauty for my grandchildren.