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Page B-2 - Shelton-Mason County Journal - Thursday, Dec. 29, 2016
ON THE TRAIL
snowy
your
mes
ylu may be sitting in a very
arm room, cheered by a crack-
ing fireplace, or charmed by a
blinking Christmas tree. Your entire
house may be merrily messy with kids
and their collateral damage: Christ-
mas cookies crumblings between cush-
ions of the couch, crumpled wrappings
and ribbons strewn about, toys, books
and dolls parked with pairs of shoes
in snowmelt corners, toy trucks peek-
ing from beneath bunk beds. Sleeping
bags and blankets swirled before the
TV, and somewhat like a real dino-
saur, a plastic T-Rex abandoned where
a newer toy took over.
Evolution.
Don't forget the
holiday smells and
sounds: The whir
of an annoying ray
gun, the Super Ma-
rio theme, Dad's
football game behind
the door of his den,
By MARK the tea kettle sing-
WOYTOWICH ing, kids screaming,
crashing, thumping
from pillow fights,
popcorn, fresh cookies, baked beans,
ham, mulled cider.
Holiday family bliss -- with healthy
family members to share it -- is about
as good as it gets here in the North-
west, as we hold our collective breath
and kiss 2017 as she comes through
the door and stands -- full of hope or
uncertainty? -- beneath the mistletoe.
SEE SNOW, THEN GO
Keep eye on Mount Ellinor and
your ears tuned to your local weather
reports. If temperatures continue
Old-growth stumps, their roots like octopus arms, line the wintry shores of Lake
to hover in the 30s, or you can see
a white dusting on Ellinor's lower
flanks, then for certain you'll find
snow in the lower Olympics, adding a
potential Bing Crosby experience to
your holiday season.
I joined dozens of others on Christ-
ALLYN I Case Inlet
29 6:44am 14.9 30 7:12am 15.2 31 12:36am -1.3 1 1:15am -1.3
Thu 12:20am 7.9 Fri12:56pm 7.1Sat7:42am 15.5 Sun8:19am 15.6
4:52pm 13.1 5:30pm 12.9 1:34pm 1.3 2:16pm 1.1
11:59pm -1.3 6:11pm 12.6 6:53pm 12.3
2 1:55am -0.8 3 2:37am 0.04 3:22am 1.2 5 4:11am 2.1
Mon 8:54am 15.8 Tue 9:31am 15.8 Wed 10:11am 15.1 Thu 10:53am 15.6
3:02pm 6.6 3:53pm 5.84:48pm 4.9 5:47pm 3.8
7:44pm 11.8 8:44pm 11.2 9:55pm 10.6 11:20pm 10.4
SHELTON ] Oakland Bay
29 12:31am -1.0 30 1:05am -1.1 31 1:42am -1.1 1 2:21am -1.1
Thu7:22am 14.9 Fri/:50am 15.2 Sat8:20am 15.5 Sun8:57arn 15.6
1:26pm 6.8 2:02pro 6.6 2:40pro 6.3 3:22pm 6.1
5:30pro 13.1 6:08pro 12.9 6:49prn 12.6 7:31pm 12.3
2 3:01am -0.7 3 3:43am 0.04 4:28am 1.0 5 5:17am 2.3
Mon 9:32am 15.8 Tue10:09am 15.8 Wed 10:49am 15.7 11 u 11:31am 15.6
4:08pro .5.7 4:59pm 5.05:54pm 4.2 6:53pm 3.2
8:22pm 11.8 9:22pm 11.2 10:33pm 10.6 11:58pm 10.4
UNION I Hood Canal
29 5:45am 12.730 6:22am 13.0 31 6:58am 13.1 1 12:10am -0.8
11:08am 1.4 Fn 11:53am 7.3 Sat 12:39pm 1.1 Sun 7:39am 13.1
3:38pm 10.8 4:11pm 10.4 4:48pm 10.1 1:27pm 7.1
11. 0pm -1.1 11:34pm -1.0 5:23pm 9.1
2 12:45am -0.2 3 1:23am 0.64 2:0Sam 1.8 5 2:54am 3.1
Mon 8:14am 13.0 Tue8:49am 12.8 Wed 9:22am 12.6 Thu9:57am 12.4
2:17pm 6.6 3:08pm 5.94:02pm 5.0 4:56pm 3.8
6:11pm 9.1 7:11pm 8.48:34pm 1.9 10:35pm 7.8
THE SUN and THE MOON
29 30 31 1 2 3 4 5
Sunrise7:59am7:59am 7:59am 7:58am 7:58am 7:59am7:59am7:59am
Sunset 4:31pm4:32pm ,: 4:33pm 4:28pm 4:28pm 4:28pm4:29pm4:29pm
Moonrise 7:59am8~.44am 9:24am4:22am 5:20am 6:16am7:09am7:59am
Moonset 5:25pm6:22pm 7:23pm 2:33pm 3:07pro3:41pm4:33pm5:25pm
New moon December 28
SHELTON-MASON COUNTY
Tidal Information courtesy NOAA I Astronomical Data courtesy U.S. Naval Observatory
mas Day, hiking the Staircase-Lake
Cushman area. Beginning at Foothills
Park, just a mile and 500 feet above
Hoodsport, a line of plowed snow
bordered state Route 119, becoming
taller mounds as I got closer to the "T"
where the highway meets Forest Ser-
vice Road 24.
Here, at the entrance to Big Creek
Campground, all the trees held snow.
The forest was buried beneath 4 to 8
inches of the white stuff, depending on
the canopy.
This was perfect snow depth for
hiking, no snow shoes required. Ani-
mal tracks stitched the snow surface
and disappeared into brush. Human
footprints made clear the entire way to
Big Creek Trail.
Aside from snow angels, snow
forts and snow ball fights, one of the
nicer winter pastimes is hiking along
a small running creek, such as Big
Creek. Throw snow balls at the icicle
formations along the banks and be-
tween the boulders.
Or simply hold still to enjoy the
sound of a tumbling creek, tempered
by fallen snow. It's a subtle delight.
If you're real lucky, you'll have one
of those moments where a big cedar
will slough off snow from its higher
branches. The tumbling white powder
will shake lower shelves loose, sending
acold, cascading kiss onto upturned
faces.
Good news, then. Without much dif-
ficulty, even the smallest of children
ought to be able to hike to the main
footbridge about a quarter-mile from
the campground gate.
From here and other nearby view-
points, you can take in Big Creek's
silvery, icy water, perhaps snapping a
photo worthy of next year's Christmas
card.
(Bring red scarves, hats or coats to
stand out, Santa-style, from the dark
trees and white background.)
I did not venture up the slopes to
the confluence and back. However, the
deep, silent, snowy woods promised to
be nothing short of a classic "one-horse
open sleigh" holiday winter experi-
ence.
Of course the sleigh may end up be-
ing you, if your little boy or girl runs
out of gas and needs a piggy-back
home.
Journal photo by Mark Woytowich
Cushman.
NO CRATER LOVE
Next, I drove 2 miles toward
Staircase, ending at the Mount Rose
trailhead, where I parked along the
shoulder.
The unpaved road held about
an inch of snow on top. Ice crystals
floated in the thousands of potholes
scattered like moon craters across the
road's surface.
I could see newer picnic tables by
the lakeshore and a stack of pressure-
treated 6-by-6 beams, as well as
heavy-construction equipment parked
nearby.
I scrambled down to the shore,
where the late morning sun shim-
mered on the lake. Sunlight pressed
warm and welcome on my face, but I
needed to zip up and button downmy
collar, such was the wind with its bit-
ing chill.
Cushman's water level was down,
but not as low as other winters.
There's plenty of beach for walking
and exploring below Mount Rose, but
further up the road the sides grow too
steep to continue along the shore.
Another good spot on Lake Cush-
man for beach combing is both sides of
the causeway road, just past the jump-
ing rock, another 2 miles ahead.
I did not make it that far, however,
because the pothole assault on my car
grew too relentless to enjoy, no matter
the recreational possibilities ahead. It
was like dodging IEDs.
I turned around and then watched
the faces of at least another 10 drivers
who passed me. Everyone -- including
the toughest dudes in pickup trucks
-- wore painful expressions as their
wheels crawled in and out of road cra-
ters deep enough to hide lug nuts from
view.
A couple girls in a blue Chevy
Malibu seemed pensive and about
to make the same decision to turn
around. Too bad, as they had asked
me for directions to Staircase, so I
am pretty sure their crater-than-thou
experience was a fairly negative one
-- too bad for an otherwise beautiful
Christmas Day.
• Mark Woytowich is a writer,
photographer and video producer who
lives in Potlatch. He can be reached at
Woytowichdesign.com.