We had set out to snowshoe to Artists Point on Koma Kulshan (Mount Baker) on a rainy February day, hoping to climb above snow level, and ended up getting more than we bargained for. It was snowing lightly when we got to the ski area parking lot, the trailhead for our hike, so we strapped on the 'shoes and headed out. Within 1/2 hour the weather had changed dramatically. Visibility dropped to 1/2 mile, then 1/4 mile and finally to 1/10 mile. The wind rose and blew the snow almost horizontally, making it hard to see 100' ahead.
We didn't have a topo map, hoping to follow the tracks of other snowshoers and relying on a GPS tracker to retrace our steps if need be. What we didn't count on was that there would be snowshoers going in many directions, or that the wind and snow would quickly obliterate their tracks and ours. Well, this was only our second snowshoe hike, and we obviously have much to learn.
After gaining a few hundred feet in elevation we encountered a sign with ominous warnings like "rescue may not be possible" and "your heirs may be fined $500". My heirs? That got my attention. So did the experienced skier who warned us that avalanche danger was increasing as the day wore on and oh, by the way, the trail we were looking for was on the next ridge over. We decided that discretion is the better part of valor and made a gradual retreat back to the truck.
If the weather was sunny our hike would have been just fine, and we plan to go back (with a topo map next time), but good judgement is as important as good gear in the backcountry, and forging ahead would have been a potentially fatal mistake. If you're unsure whether you can safely procede, don't. There's always another day. Besides, being too goal oriented is linear thinking at its worst. The journey is the destination, and we had a lovely if brief stroll through a winter storm at 5000' in the North Cascades, got a chance to test our winter gear under severe conditions (we stayed warm and dry) and got some nice pictures.
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