Snowshoeing in Idaho

 

Snowshoeing in Idaho

I have a new favorite sport, and it’s unfortunate that I can only partake of it in the winter. Snowshoeing is an easy and very versatile sport.  Generally, if you can walk you can snowshoe. Gone are the days of huge wood-framed shoes and here to stay are the strong aluminum framed equipment with durable bindings that can support a myriad of boots.

Dixie Idaho was the destination of choice for our first outing of the season.  A popular place in the 1800s, its population has dwindled from several thousand during the peak of the gold rush to about 20 permanent residents today. We had come up for Thanksgiving with our loyal dogs who also loved the snow, and since it had just dumped three feet on the cabin, we would be able to enjoy as much snowshoeing as we wanted.  We even had to snowshoe up to the cabin that first night we arrived.  Not exactly what I wanted to do at 2 am, and I was glad to have a pair handy.

The first day we grabbed the dogs and headed out on a path we discovered at the back of the cabin.  It was fairly flat and a few snowmobiles had broken trail for us, providing a nice track to follow.  Solstice and Rhody bounded up ahead, enjoying the sunny weather and the fluffy snow. It is a rarity when I can keep up with the fast pace of the dogs, or that they aren’t running circles around us, putting in two to three miles for our every one. It’s quite an aerobic workout for them, and they tend to stay very close to our heels. We veered off the trail at one point to reach the peak of the ridge to take some pictures. Having to break trail was a bit more of a workout.  I didn’t think the hill was that steep, but I was having a difficult time making it up the slope.  Every step I took was getting harder and harder.  Was I that out of shape? I stopped to take a breather and felt myself tipping backwards.  My faithful companion had found the hike to be tougher than he thought also, and was stepping on the backs of my snowshoes during the ascent.  The dog was smart; you had to give him credit. My climbing buddy was laughing, because he had been watching the spectacle all along and was wondering when I would notice. We took a few pictures at the top, gave the dogs some much-needed water and admired the landscape.  With the afternoon light fading and the dogs panting behind us, we descended the hill and headed for the cabin. “Dog-tired” was an expression I could fully relate too, and it applied as much to us, as to our four-footed companions.