Calendar

Past Activity

Midnight Lake

  • Start date: 12/23/2017

  • Start time: 12:00 AM

  • End date: 12/23/2017

  • End time: 11:59 PM

Description:

We'll warm-up with the flat ski in to Pengra Pass. Then we'll turn to climb up the PCT to Midnight Lake, where we'll have lunch if it's not too early (bring extra food for the jays!). Then we'll backtrack a short distance to continue on the rolling terrain through the woods to Abernathy Road, which goes past Bechtel Shelter (an alternate lunch spot). If the trail has been broken, from here it's a quick glide down the road back to Pengra Pass, followed by the flat tramp back to the Sno-Park.

This is a good moderate trail, but not suitable for beginners.

  • Event Leader: Sue Wolling

  • Event Leader Phone: 541-345-2110

  • Event Leader Email: sue.wolling@gmail.com

  • Assistant Leader:

  • Event category: Trips

  • Area Type: Mountain

  • Departure Location: South Eugene High School, 19th & Patterson

  • Rating: Moderate

  • Roundtrip total drive miles: 136

  • Season: 2018

  • Permits Required:

  • Event Status: Passed

  • Supplies and Equipment Required: Skis, boots, poles, food, water/hot drink, non-cotton clothing in layers. Optional gaiters, Maxi-Glide, and all of the other stuff you haven't seen since last winter! If you could drive, please come prepared to drive--we can only take as many skiers as we have drivers to carry them. I will bring one Sno-Park permit, if you could drive but don't have a permit.

  • participant prerequisites:

  • Conditions:

  • Total Distance: 6

  • Member Fees: 1

  • Elevation Gain: 600

  • Non-Member Fees: 5

  • Committee: Trips

  • Junior member fees: —

Trip Report

Six interested skiers signed up for the Midnight Lake trip—but there were no drivers. Finally Linda agreed, with some trepidation, to drive her little Honda Civic up the pass. She could only take three people, and even that required bungee cords to strap the third set of skis to the rack—so only the first three people on the sign-up sheet were able to go. Fortunately, the roads weren’t bad, and the snow was surprisingly good. There were two feet of snow measured at the same gauge that measured about five feet this time last year, but that was plenty. We set out on the flat road to Pengra Pass, hoping that we’d remember what to do with the boards strapped to our feet. Fortunately, cross-country skiing is like riding a bike—you never really forget your skills (especially if were never very proficient to start with!) We enjoyed the track some previous skier had made for the entire route: up the PCT to Midnight Lake, then the tie-in trail over to Abernathy Road and lunch at Bechtel Shelter, followed by the glide back to Pengra Pass. It was a mostly sunny day, and a great way to start both the ski season and the Christmas holidays.