It never hurts to have a bit of luck when going to the Ochocos.  You don't really know if the snow will be any good or if the road to Walton Lake will be plowed.  But Tuesday, March 18, we got lucky; a good thing after driving 65 miles!

 

There was 8" of powdery snow under the trees, and a breakable crust with an inch or two of overnight fresh on top.  We decided to ski out Corral Loop, then round on Butterfield, and return on Corral.  We broke trail all the way out (about 5 miles), then skied back on our initial tracks for a total of about 6.8 miles.

The Ochocos are quite different from the Cascades, with more open, rolling terrain.  The slopes are dotted with fir and Ponderosa pines, which were nice to see now that Edison is closed.  Starting up the road to Walton Lake, we passed a half dozen wild horses and a band of wild turkeys.  And no other skiers!

 

Thanks to Roz for sharing her wealth of knowledge about this area, Kris for photos and spotting the turkeys, and Gary for the excellent banana bread!