Your Favorite/Top Snow Cat Destinations

[Lyndon]

Yellowstone is certainly one of the leading Snow Cat Trip destinations. Crater Lake National Monument is a winner too.
For those of you that have a machine or two, and are set up to "Haul", that is have a rugged trailer set-up that is worthy of long haul road trips, I think my #2 choice over Yellowstone would be Pualina Lake, in Oregon. It's a few miles from Bend Oregon, in the Cascades, and an hour away from Crater Lake National Monument. It, Like Carater lake, is a volcano top that has a small lake at the top. There is a cluster of cabins around it that are available to be rented and a very good restraunt that is open Friday, Saturday's and Sunday's. Pualina is ONLY accessable by Snowmobile, or for a real class appearance, Snow Cat. It's not expensive and there are no park fee's like at Yellowstone. BUT, this site has been a Destination for Snowmobilers for a long time, and is completely booked up around Christmas, New Year's, Thanksgiving, all the major holidays, YEARS in advance. The last time I checked XMass was booked for 4 years. It's groomed too. Altitude is about 6000'. So what's your favorite destination!

 

[fogtender]

My favorite trip to make is out to our cabin on the Lake. It is located directly North of Mt. McKinley Park boundary by about nine miles or so. It is all wilderness in between the Park and the property.

Although the trip is made in the winter by both snow machine and snow cat, it is still a great trip there. The issue of breakdown always looms such as Roughwoods is having, but it is still worth the effort despite the downsides that we incur.

Although it is a 40 mile trip one way, getting there isn't as much fun as being there, but it is part of the trip. In the summer before last, I left my "Imp" out the there for the year for using with moose hunting and it worked great during the summer for retrieving moose after the hunt.

Anytime someone wants to make the trip with us, they are more than welcome to follow us there.

 

[mtmogs]

Great pics fogtender! Awesome spot you have there. Any fish in those lakes? How do you get in there minus any snow? Fly? Could you use an an Argo to get there? That's a cool green cabin you have. Almost identicle to our first cabin we built in Montana. We called it the "Kazinsky Kastle."

 

[Snowcat Operations]

So far one of the nicest places Ive been to has been Big Creek ID.

 

[Lyndon]

Great Pic's Fogtender! Keep it up!

 

[Snowcat Operations]

Heres another beautiful place!

 

[Mainer]

What a photo!

 

[fogtender]

Great pics fogtender! Awesome spot you have there. Any fish in those lakes? How do you get in there minus any snow? Fly? Could you use an an Argo to get there? That's a cool green cabin you have. Almost identicle to our first cabin we built in Montana. We called it the "Kazinsky Kastle."

Summer is a fly in access. There is a couple of ways one "Might" get an argo in there, but you have to cross some rivers that may be a bit much for one. The runway was getting cleared in that aerial photo and is pretty much all dirt now. Still have to do some dragging and finish work on it, but it is getting there, then a float plane won't be required, I can taxi up to the cabin directly. Here is some photos of what the runway looked from the start to now.

Roughwoods cabin is to the left in the last photo flying down the south end of the runway. The place has lots of critters like wolf, moose, lynx, black bear and grizzly along with a lot of fur bearing critters.

The trip out on the snowcats is fun, but long. The snowmachines are a bit faster, but the Imps break the trail fairly nicely and makes for a good trail to run the snowmachines on. Even better if we remember to pull a drag when we first break the trail open.

 

[fogtender]

Heres another beautiful place!

Very nice photo, looks like the area that we run though on the way to our cabins. In Jan. that is about what the sun looks like at "High Noon"...

 

[yellowpine O.T.S.]

I love it!!!! What an American idea an airstrip built instead of being destroyed.

 

[aksnocat]

Hey Fogtender!

Based on the photo you posted of it from the air, I think I found your cabin on Google Earth.

Is that it?

(I put the pushpin there)

 

[fogtender]

Hey Fogtender!

Based on the photo you posted of it from the air, I think I found your cabin on Google Earth.

Is that it?

(I put the pushpin there)

Yeah, but I moved out of the yellow pin when I built the cabin...

But that is about where it is at, a little bit closer to the left and the lake...