Vista Butte (January 2011)

Because the snow wasn't stellar during our Sunriver weekend, we decided to borrow Kari and Vicki's snowshoes and hoof it to the top of Vista Butte (just east of Mount Bachelor and Tumalo Mountain) for views described as "stunning".

Clear skies were above us as we started out on the trail, which began very flat, paralleling the highway. We started seeing snowflakes falling from the blue sky and noticed storm clouds approaching from the west. We knew they were coming our way, and we hoped to beat the system so we'd have some views from the top.

The trail was circuitous, though well traveled and easy to follow. I made some snow monsters along the way:
The top was a beautiful flat spot with 360-degree views - normally. We could see far to the east:
But nothing to the west (where ALL the mountain are):
The cold winds were whipping on top of the butte, and I mildly froze while Brad took more pictures.

Then he decided to leap off the cornice and into the soft snow below while I took action shots:
Different cornice:
Getting a running start:
The happy couple:
It was a great, achievable trail (about 4.5 miles) that we would definitely do again - on a clear day. We'd also like to try it in the summer. I'm sure the views are amazing.

:)