Backpacking through Snow for Fun?

We made an impromptu trip out to our family property this last weekend. The route was covered in snow 2ft+ deep, and was far too soft to drive on top of. My cousin quickly figured that out after getting his truck buried after only 100ft. However the ATVs we brought were light enough and we used them to haul the majority of our gear. The rest of our gear we hiked down on our frame packs.

Unfortunately I still haven't invested in snow shoes, so the hike was slow going. I was very impressed with my son who didn't complain once on the long hike.

We arrived at the lake to find it frozen over, and strong enough to walk across. We didn't want to push the limits, so we only ventured out a short distance onto the lagoon section for pictures. My girlfriend's grandmother has told us stories of her ice skating on the lake when she was little. That would be an amazing experience especially for my girlfriend who's an avid figure/syncro ice skater. I'll have to research the proper procedures and safety guidelines for skating on a naturally frozen lake.

Before dinner We spent a couple hours digging out the old fire pit, and building a curved wind break wall around it with the snow. For dinner we boiled water and ate a few dehydrated meals. I can't praise those enough, so simple and delicious. I especially love the chili-mac and lasagna dinners. After dinner we enjoyed some scotch & cigars around the fire pit. We also had some music thanks to my iPod and the surprisingly good/cheap travel speakers I bought earlier in the day.

It rained all night on us, but fortunately stopped long enough the next day for us to pack up and hike out. We also had to spend three hours digging my cousin's truck out of the snow. Very laborious, but a good educational lesson for my city slicker friends.

In all a great trip. I can't wait to come back and spend more time at the lake this spring!