In winter you can walk in regular shoes on the groomed portion of the trail but do NOT get off the packed portion of the trail to get the cache in winter UNLESS you have snowshoes or skis on. YOU WILL DISAPPEAR in the powdered snow and have real difficulty getting out without help.
We set this while out with a youth group learning the rudiments of snowshoeing and cross-country skiing. Last time we were this way was in summer on the way to get Traveler's 2nd Cache. At the time it seemed like a LONG way out there and the cache was a stretch to reach. We found it again with the kids and it was well below eye level due to the snow! These two "Groomed Trail" caches should make the trip out more rewarding.
The cache was set about 12" above "ground level" in a VERY small tree to gain more greenery cover as most of the larger trees in the area had no branches/cover down low. It was only after taking a fall (on snowshoes in the powder) and pushing a 5’ ski pole handle to well below “snow level” that we realized that the snow cover was nearer to 6’ than the 12” that it looked like from the groomed trail! That “little” tree? must be the top of a much larger tree buried beneath the snow! The cache may be very high in summer but is on a hook and you can use a dead branch to recover if needed.
PLEASE - Replace as HIGH as you can reach so it will remain accessible in winter!
CONGRATS to CB_Beauty and Soldier Grrrl for Co-FTF on 8-4-15!