PCT from Trout Creek to Wind River Road in a Blizzard

Trail Name: Pacific Crest Trail

Enter/Exit: Trout Creek Trailhead

Trip type:  In-and-out

Difficulty: Easy (depending on weather)

Distance: 7 Miles round trip

Elevation: 650 feet

Guide: https://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/pacific-crest-trail-section-h-bridge-of-gods-to-white-pass

Review: In December of 2023 I approached my buddy with the idea of hiking a 20 miles stretch of the PCT in Washington as our first trip of 2024. At that point weather was forecast to be wet and in the high 30’s to 40’s. Not what I would call fun but definitely doable as 2 ten mile or a 15 and 5 mile days.

As the date approached the weather forecast kept dropping. First it was the 20’s and a week before it was showing single digit temps but clear skies. We agreed that cold was fine so long as there was no snow. Then days before we were to leave, the snow began to fall at higher elevations. We changed our plans to hike a point to point with two cars and instead would take my SUV to Trout Creek and try to hike 5 miles north on the PCT to Panther Creek Campground where we would have lunch before returning to camp at the SUV. This would allow us to pack a full bag just in case we had to camp elsewhere but also bring extra warm gear to keep in the SUV as neither of us had camped in temps that low before.

We drove in through about a foot of snow and found the Trout Creek Bridge where we parked. Thankfully, at some point the previous day others had been hiking in the snow and we were able to use some of their tracks to mostly avoid post holeing. About a mile up trail a creek formed in the trail and stumps were placed every few feet to allow a dry crossing. Those stumps were covered in snow and ice however which made for very slow progress. Shortly after that we reached an open field which had a clear path through but frequently led to calf deep post holing. Because of the slow going we reached the Wind River Bridge around 11am and were significantly behind schedule. The snow had been falling since we had gotten on trail and we wanted to ensure we would make it back to camp before 3pm to utilize all of the daylight we could to pitch camp. We continued past the bridge up to Wind River Road where we paused for a break and headed back the way we came before enjoying lunch along the river. Then temps were still in the single digits and although the warm food was nice it was tough to get back into our cold and wet clothes before we made the 3 mile trek back to the truck.

We sat for over an hour warming and psyching ourselves up for setting up camp in the cold. I pitched my tarp (for the second time every) and set up my sleep system under it. The snow was beginning to fall heavier and heavier. I helped my friend pitch the 3 person snow tent and get all of his gear set up before we retreated to the SUV to heat up water and rehydrate dinner. The near freezing water took what seemed like an eternity to come to a simmer. This seemed good enough to pour into our dinners before stuffing them inside our jackets to rehydrate and warm us up. We quickly ate and retired to our tents to change into our warmest clothes before sliding into our sleeping bags with quilts draped over the top. Within 15 minutes we were both sound asleep as the snow continued to fall. I slept for a few hours at a time before waking to roll over or pull the sleeping bag and quilt further over me. Around 9pm I awoke with a sweaty head and had to pull up my beanie and pull down my buff. 13 hours after we went to bed we woke up and decided to brave the single digit temps to use the bathroom and pack up as quickly as we could. Nothing was returned to its stuff sack, instead things were tossed haphazardly into the back of the SUV and we crossed our fingers we could drive out through the now 18” of snow. I put it in 4 wheel drive low and we easily plowed through the snow until we made it to the highway. Crossing over the Bridge of the Gods made for an otherworldly view as everything was white and frozen. The freeways were clear enough to feel safe and we made our way home to a warm and comfortable bed. Many lessons were learned, the most important was that we had what it took to survive the rarely seen in our area single digit temps. Cheers!

Rating: bag it during better weather!

Rating Guide:

-Gram it: Check out the pictures on Instagram because this one is not worth seeing in person.

-Hike it: It’s short and sweet. Might as well knock it out in a day.

-Bag it: Pack a bag and spend the night.

-Bring a friend: Easy enough to bring a friend. Maybe this is where you can introduce someone to backpacking.

-Come Back: I will keep doing this trip it is so good!