Trip Report
Intermediate Snowshoe Payne Creek
Everyone agreed this was an excellent adventure as we encountered a variety different trail surfaces all day. At 8:00 am the first 1.7 miles to the Payne Creek / Brookside McCurdy split, was a rotating mix of ice, dry dirt, and mud. When we returned at 1:30 it was mostly melted and muddy. Once on Payne Creek Trail we put on spikes and encountered mostly packed snow surfaces. During the last .75 miles, we post-holed uphill in two-plus feet of loose, faceted snow, clearly blown around. After lunch we plunge-stepped back down the hill best we could but, because the trail there is also a wide drainage, there were many hidden logs and rocks so we sometimes had to pick our steps carefully. Bluebird sky most of the day. Everyone had a great workout and saw beautiful snowy forest scenes, lots of animal tracks, and great views.
Robbie Monsma
- Fri, Mar 10, 2023
- Intermediate Snowshoe – Payne Creek
- Payne Creek
- Hiking & Snowshoeing
- Successful
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- Road suitable for all vehicles
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At 8:00 am the first 1.7 miles to the Payne Creek / Brookside McCurdy split, was a rotating mix of ice, dry dirt, and mud. When we returned at 1:30 it was mostly melted and muddy. Once on Payne Creek Trail we put on spikes and encountered mostly packed snow surfaces. During the last .75 miles, we broke trail in a line, post-holing uphill in two-plus feet of loose, faceted snow, clearly blown around. After lunch we plunge-stepped back down the hill best we could but, because the trail there is also a wide drainage, there were many hidden logs and rocks so we had to pick our steps carefully.
Everyone agreed this was an excellent adventure because we encountered a variety of different trail surfaces throughout the day. Bluebird sky most of the time. Everyone had a great workout and saw beautiful snowy forest scenes, lots of animal tracks (including moose and maybe bobcat), and great views of the Kenosha peaks, including a new communication tower atop Mt Bailey.