Snow Comes to Mule Mountain 16-Dec-2015
Posted: December 17th, 2015, 9:17 am
This is one of the classic hikes in the Applegate Valley W of Medford (see Field Guide); one that we first did last December when snow was in short supply (TR).
But last Sunday, a major storm dropped the snow level to 500' and the Mule Mountain area got plastered with 8-12" of fluffy new snow. What a welcome relief after two years of drought and skimpy snow! We took advantage of the brief break between storms for a quick snow hike up to the ridge crest at 4300'. Snow started showing up around the 2500' level,
got thicker at the shady crest at 3200',
and was everywhere by 4000'. We'd started under low clouds but actually climbed above them at this point into sunshine.
Above the clouds, we had a great view of the Red Buttes Wilderness to the SW,
with the Red Buttes themselves sporting more snow than we've seen in two years.
We continued climbing toward the saddle at 4300',
observing the little stuff as we went along.
We stopped at the saddle for a snack and a view to the W of the Red Buttes and Siskiyou Crest,
of cloud-shrouded Greyback Mtn and Little Sugarloaf Pk (Grayback TR)
and of the old LO (and current met station) on Acorn Woman Peak (arrow) across the valley (Acorn Woman Peak TR).
The sunshine lasted about an hour and then the next storm system started rolling in, preceded by high clouds that quickly blotted out the sun.
So we started down,
back into the low clouds that were once again starting to fill the valley below.
We dropped below the clouds at around 3000',
and continued back to the TH through the forest,
admiring patches of intricately constructed lichens,
the fascinating textures and colors of madrone bark,
and "waterfalls" of tree sap along the way.
A short (8.5 mi RT, 2500' EG) but fun snow hike squeezed in between the waves of storms that seem to be our destiny this winter season. But all good after the years of drought.
But last Sunday, a major storm dropped the snow level to 500' and the Mule Mountain area got plastered with 8-12" of fluffy new snow. What a welcome relief after two years of drought and skimpy snow! We took advantage of the brief break between storms for a quick snow hike up to the ridge crest at 4300'. Snow started showing up around the 2500' level,
got thicker at the shady crest at 3200',
and was everywhere by 4000'. We'd started under low clouds but actually climbed above them at this point into sunshine.
Above the clouds, we had a great view of the Red Buttes Wilderness to the SW,
with the Red Buttes themselves sporting more snow than we've seen in two years.
We continued climbing toward the saddle at 4300',
observing the little stuff as we went along.
We stopped at the saddle for a snack and a view to the W of the Red Buttes and Siskiyou Crest,
of cloud-shrouded Greyback Mtn and Little Sugarloaf Pk (Grayback TR)
and of the old LO (and current met station) on Acorn Woman Peak (arrow) across the valley (Acorn Woman Peak TR).
The sunshine lasted about an hour and then the next storm system started rolling in, preceded by high clouds that quickly blotted out the sun.
So we started down,
back into the low clouds that were once again starting to fill the valley below.
We dropped below the clouds at around 3000',
and continued back to the TH through the forest,
admiring patches of intricately constructed lichens,
the fascinating textures and colors of madrone bark,
and "waterfalls" of tree sap along the way.
A short (8.5 mi RT, 2500' EG) but fun snow hike squeezed in between the waves of storms that seem to be our destiny this winter season. But all good after the years of drought.
