If the snowshoe fits, go for it

B ill Coady had shouldered a backpack for decades.

He had subscribed to backpacking magazines and read hiking guides.

The Everett Mountaineers is offering an introductory snowshoe course beginning Jan. 12.

The class consists of two lectures at Cascade Crags, 2820 Rucker Ave., Everett, and a field trip. No experience is required.

The class costs $39 for Mountaineers members and $49 for others.

For more information, contact Hal Watrous of the Everett Mountaineers at 425-488-8630 or email him at h.watrous@verizon.net.

The Mountaineer’s Web site is www.everettmountaineers.org.

Cascade Guiding Services is offering a beginner’s snowshoe course Jan. 8 at 10 a.m. on Mount Pilchuck.

The class costs $45 per person, and rentals are available.

Reservations are required. Call 425-346-9302 to register or go to www.cascadeguide.com.

He had explored the desert and mountains of Southern California, the Olympic Mountains and the Cascades and volunteered with the Washington Trails Association.

The Monroe man was an avid outdoorsman, but at 50, he decided to take his skills and knowledge to the next level.

He enrolled in alpine scrambling and snowshoeing classes run by the Everett branch of the Mountaineers, a Northwest outdoor recreation group dedicated to enjoying and protecting natural areas. Scrambling is traveling off trail, often over rock, snow or brush.

The classes and Coady’s involvement with the group helped him develop new skills and gain respect for the wilderness.

“I am much more aware of the potential consequences of making mistakes in the backcountry,” said Coady, now 52. “I am not afraid of it, but I take appropriate precautions.”

The Mountaineers offer a variety of classes throughout the year for mastering outdoors skills, geared to both the seasoned backpacker and the beginner.

Next up is an introductory snowshoe course beginning Jan. 12.

The class provides information on snowshoe techniques, equipment, winter safety, avalanche awareness, trip preparation and route finding.

No experience is required. The class includes two lectures and a field trip. Scrambling courses begin in November.

Coady took the snowshoe class last winter and said the class was worth the registration fee – $39 for members and $49 for others – even though he had learned most of the winter safety information in previous Mountaineers classes.

Part of the appeal of the classes for Coady is gaining confidence. The Mountaineers emphasize safety and preparation, and that has earned them a reputation with some people for being strict about protocol, Coady said.

The group doesn’t allow alcohol or pets on trips, for example. Group leaders expect trip participants to arrive with a set list of supplies called the “10 Essentials.”

Hal Watrous, an Everett Mountaineers group leader, said he has encountered people not involved with the Mountaineers who consider themselves experienced, but make dangerous judgment calls. In one instance, an acquaintance led a church youth group on a hiking trip and allowed participants to walk barefoot and not bring water.

“I’ve never gotten the impression that we’re not going to take any risks or be spontaneous,” Coady said. “It’s the opposite because I am going places that I never would have thought to go before because I know what to do.”

On an earlier trip, he had the courage and knowledge to tackle one of the final assignments for his scrambling course: glissading nearly 1,000 feet down Cowboy Mountain at Stevens Pass.

“You sit on your butt and control the descent with an ice ax,” he explained. “I never would have considered that enjoyable or practical but it was tremendous, a lot of fun.”

On a recent Mountaineers snowshoe trip, Coady and a group of seven others decided to break from the trail and head straight up Mount Sawyer, a 5,501-foot peak in the Alpine Lakes Wilderness west of Stevens Pass.

“In the past would I have attempted that before? No,” Coady said.

The trip was typical, Coady said, of those he has participated in with the Mountaineers.

Watrous, a group leader trained by the Mountaineers, planned the trip route and kept an eye on the weather forecast.

The snowshoers met at a Monroe Starbucks and carpooled to the trailhead. The group consisted of men and women of different ages and with varying levels of experience. Some had strapped on snowshoes only once or twice before. Another had traveled the backcountry extensively solo for decades.

After traveling about three miles along the wooded Tonga Ridge, the group decided to climb to the summit of Mount Sawyer, choosing a more direct route than the trail.

The snowshoers kick-stepped up the steep slope through crusty snow toward a rock outcropping at the top. When everyone had reached the peak, they settled down for lunch, to chat and take in a nearly cloudless view that stretched to Puget Sound.

The classes and trips serve as a social outlet, allowing members to rub elbows with a cross section of people.

“I’ve met doctors, writers, students. It’s just a good place to meet a variety of people who have the same enjoyment of the outdoors,” said Coady, who works as a commercial window sales representative.

“Anybody who likes the outdoors will only enrich their enjoyment of the outdoors if they sample Mountaineers trips. It’s a great place to broaden your horizons.”

Reporter Debra Smith: 425-339-3197 or dsmith@heraldnet.com.