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Tag Archives: Gunn Ranch

Sunshine for Skiing

The Methow Valley has been socked in with fog for a few days now and it’s not very pleasant. Gray and feels colder than it is. The light is flat. This morning I had lots of choices for skate skiing on groomed trails and I could tell from a web cam that one of them had sunshine and it’s a dog trail. Sky has not been to Gunn Ranch but she’s doing well at Big Valley so I figured we could give it a try. This trail is a long gradual uphill climb of 5k, or more. I just went the 5k and that was enough for me today. And then it’s down, down, down back to the trailhead. With perfect grooming it was lots of fun but when I got going pretty fast, Sky would come too close and cut me off or step on my skis. Twice she caused me to fall. I did figure out how fast to go and keep her out of my way after that and also I kept my eyes on her pretty closely. And we stopped and took pictures too. It was beautiful in the sunshine just barely above the sea of clouds in the valley below.

First tracks
Sky watches for other skiers sneaking up on us, or so she thinks.
Ponderosa pines in glorious winter sunshine
Lucky to be here!
Running with stick
She carried the stick all the way to the car.
Looking up valley
The fog is rising
Back towards town, somewhere under the clouds.
Probably should have stayed longer.

Sunshine and More Dogs

Yesterday was fabulously sunny and cold at Gunn Ranch! 9 degrees when I arrived! The glorious blue skies and sunshine brought out the skiers and their dogs; lots of backcountry skiers, some snowshoers and the first ‘fat bike’ I’ve seen on the groomed trails. Luna’s tall blonde California friend was back for another day on the trail. Two dogs, a jack russell and a blonde goldendoodle came all the way from Utah to ski our trails. A husky mix puppy came from Canada. Some dogs wore boots to keep the snow from building up on their pads. No one seemed to complain about the cold and everyone had fun!

 

This is the first time I’ve tried the new gallery feature in WordPress. Do you like it? Or not? Let me know.

Happy New Year!

 

Ski Dogs

Yesterday I volunteered at the Gunn Ranch trailhead. It is one of the places where dogs are allowed on the ski trails. They need passes just like people. Luna accompanied me and enjoyed meeting dogs and being part of the fun. Some dogs were going backcountry skiing and did not need passes. It was a pretty foggy day at the trailhead. Returning skiers said that 5 k up the trail, they broke into the sunshine. Lucky them!

 

Backcountry skiers disapeared into this fog before emerging into the sunshine!

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Luna particularly liked this blonde goldendoodle from Orange County, CA

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His owners flew up with him just the day before

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He likes it here

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Ready to go out on the trail

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One of the backcountry dogs. He was tired from the deep snow.

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Some dogs have trouble with snow sticking between their pads

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She’s 11!

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Getting to know each other in the parking lot

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Getting started going into the backcountry can be a challenge.

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And they’re off.

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Daisy Mae before skiing

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Kavu is a handsome fellow from the west side

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Frosty eyelashes were common after skiing through the fog for both people and dogs!

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Daisy Mae after

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Driving to and from Gunn Ranch can be a challenge in the fog.

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