Snow Check

We have had a warm and dry Spring so far and I thought it might be a good time to check the snow levels on the mountain roads.  Joe and I took a ride up in the Gifford Pinchot National Forest to see how far we could get.  We tried three different passes and got this:

and this:

On the third pass, I thought we were going to make it, but no go.  Snow levels were around 2700 feet on my GPS and most of the passes are around 3500, so it is going to be a couple of weeks yet, and maybe more if it cools back down.  Last year we didn't get over the mountains until July. 

On the ride we encountered some helicopter logging:

Quite an operation, with lots of men working and expensive equipment.  I've read that the value of timber is up, and everybody seems to be taking advantage of the high prices. 

We took a side trip up to the trail head for the Silverstar Peak trail and found that to be snow free even though the trail head was at 3100 feet.  I guess it all depends on the amount of sun exposure the road gets.  I took this picture from the trail head with Mt St Helens in the distance:

So, the ride was somewhat abbreviated, but we took advantage of the extra time after we got back to do some work on Joe's new (to him) bike.  The back roads take their toll on things that are not fastened down well, and Joe had lost a few critical screws and had a rear fender flopping around.  After we found what we needed, we stopped in the local hardware store to buy stuff......much cheaper than official Kawasaki parts.