Snowshoe Upgrade: From Zero to Tahoe

Today I had the great fortune of breaking in a new pair of snowshoes.

I got hooked on snowshoeing last year, after my sister bought me a pair for my birthday. I managed to get up into the Colorado high country about half a dozen times.

The pair she got me was an inexpensive brand from Costco---not bad, but rather bulky and suited more for floatation than for climbing, which is what I wanted them for.

So I used the experience with this starter pair to plan to buy a more advanced pair this year.  I decided definitely on the MSR Lightning Ascent 30".

But my wandering sojourn in California kept me far away from snow until just recently, when I started driving up the Eastern Sierra.

In Bishop I scoped out all the outdoor stores---there are quite a few---and found a very small selection. I knew I was heading towards Reno, but the website said the kind I wanted was sold out and unavailable in the store.

On a whim, while driving up 395 from Bishop,  on a sunny day when the snow-capped Sierra was shining like some heavenly ultra reality, I stopped int he resort town of Mammoth Lakes and ducked into Kittredge Sports on Main Street.

Like most places I'd checked in California, the snowshoe selection was meager. I mentioned to the guy there what I was looking for, and he directed me across the street to Mammoth Mountaineering.

I picked my way across the snow lined highway and found myself in a dark and serious gear store, completely stuffed with all sorts of gear handing from the ceiling like a cave.

The sole female employee was off in the ski section fitting a customer for boots,s o I picked my way through the maze like array of goods, looking for the snowshoes, expecting to be disappointed again.

To my delight I found the snowshoe section was quite ample. And all at once, right in front of my eyes, was exactly the pair I was looking for. I had to look them over to make sure they were what I wanted exactly.

Then I checked the price. I was expecting some big markup, which would give me an excuse not to buy them, but they were the same price as at REI and most online outlets.

All excuses were going. I acted instantly. I grabbed the pair and took them up to the counter. It took few minutes for the woman in the back to see me there.

I think she was a bit surprised at the quickness of the whole thing.

"These are great snowshoes," she said

I told her how I'd resolved to buy only these pair, and how I'd found myself in snow country unexpectedly. She understood why I'd snatched them up.

On the way out of the store, and driving up 395, I had all sorts of panic thoughts, like "if I don't like them, or if they are defective, I can't return them, like I could if I bought them at an REI, since I'll be hundreds of miles away by nightfall."

But that was absurd of course. I wasn't going to return them, and if there was something wrong, they could be fixed.

Yesterday here in Nevada I completed my new set-up with a brand new set of waterproof Salomon boots on sale at the REI in Reno. The woman there said they were lucky to have my size, this late in the season.

Last night, on my first day of housesitting here in Nevada, I decided that I just had to break them in. No excuses. So I laid everything out, and cleaned out the trunk of my car and put the snowshoes in there.

Of course this morning the inertia of my torpid soul made me sleep in. The clouds were low and snow flurries erupted just after I made coffee. I looked to be a bad day for an outing.

But the thought of not going began to make me said. I knew how good I'd feel if I used my new snowshoes right away. I wouldn't care anymore about how much they and the boots cost, if I used them.

Then right as I was leaving, my host's niece dropped by to pick up an article of clothing, and I had to chat with her for a half hour. Then leaving in the car, I forgot my gloves and had to go back.

It was just one of those days to forge ahead no matter what. Finally a little past noon, having driven up the pass to Lake Tahoe, I was parked beside snow-lined Highway 50 at Spooner Summit in the mountains above Carson City.

I put on my snowshoes and walked past a family sledding at the trailhead. I chose the steepest path and headed up into the trees, trying to wear myself out.

A half hour later I was on a sunny mountaintop looking down at the supernatural blueness of Lake Tahoe and the snowy Sierra beyond.

The huffing and puffing was enough to get to taste the ketosis in my mouth. My standard reward after coming home that evening was two pieces of dark chocolate from hosts' pantry. They had told me to help myself after all. I'm genuinely surprised at my will power.