Winter hiking in snow has been a challenge for us this year since by the time we realized we needed snowshoes, they were sold out locally. Our winter hikes have involved more high desert locations with trips to Fort Rock, Whychus Canyon Preserve, Bessie Butte, Lake Billy Chinook, Blue Basin, and repeated visits to Smith Rock among our favorites. However, last Saturday we decided to visit Santiam Pass and hike the road to Big Lake. 

We arrived at the Ray Benson Sno Park around 8:40 am and found many people there either camping in their RVs or setting up their snow mobiles. We slipped on ice cleats and were determined to walk the couple miles to the far west side of Big Lake where we were told the views of Mt. Washington were the best.  It was a beautiful sunny day and the weather warmed as the day wore on.  The views of Mt. Washington from Big Lake were stunning and we were surprised to see that the lake was still frozen to the extent that snow mobiles were driven across the ice.

After leaving the lake, we decided to take the Ray Benson Sno Loop and visit the Brandenburg Shelter. The trails were fine traveling with our snow cleats and we saw several people cross country skiing as well as snow shoeing and hiking like us. The shelter provided us with both Mt. Washington and Three Fingered Jack views and an opportunity to talk with other people enjoying the day.

All in all, we traveled roughly 10 miles and really had fun being outside in the Mt. Washington Wilderness on a late winter day.