He could have talked me over a cliff if there were a Dutch Brothers at the bottom

"Coffee," I mumbled sleepily.

That's the only word I could find in my groggy state. Matt pulled back the curtains revealing not only daylight, but a sky that had obviously been that way for several hours. Once upon a time, when I was on a typical Monday thru Friday person, I was a morning person. I relished in the stillness of the morning, watching the world go from dark and peaceful to a rush of excitement. These days? Forget about it.

Mt. McLoughlin didn't want to leave her (cloud) blanket behind this morning either.

Out of desperation, I choked down a cup of the bitter sludge passed off as hotel coffee. I don't drink coffee regularly, and when I do, it's almost always decaf. I wondered how it was possible to become such a coffee snob when I seldom drink the stuff. Nevertheless, this morning required the real thing, not the broken decaf. Adventure traveling with Matt almost always requires the regular because we're forever doomed to be fitness mismatches. He completely wrecks me when I let him. This trip, I definitely had.  Matt was sneaky enough to lure me out of the hotel room in full adventure gear by promising good coffee. That morning, he could have talked me over a cliff if there were a Dutch Brothers at the bottom.

Once I was fully caffeinated, an americano in one hand and a snickerdoodle the size of my face in the other, I was much more of a joy to be around. It just so happened to be the part of our drive where the mountains turned white and snow clung to every surface, so I can't be sure which improved my mood.

Compared to our previous snowshoe day, this one was easy. Following a single set of fluffy snowmobile tracks, each footstep held firm and we leisurely walked up the mountainside with ease. We always find something to talk about, but when I come to write about it later, I've completely forgotten. I'm sure the coffee made me extra chatty, too.

Our destination for the day is the Table Mountain Lookout. As we climbed higher, the wind picked up. Clouds moved in while a biting icy cold nipped our cheeks. We picked up the pace hoping that we wouldn't miss the views for the day.

Moments later, we arrived at a snowy gate. Above the gate was a collection of towers. Did we have the wrong mountaintop? We weren't sure, but continued up anyway knowing the view from here would be great, lookout or no lookout.

We ended up being right on both accounts. The lookout tower was where one would expect and the views were appropriately stunning. A partly cloudy day added to the beauty, casting varying shades of blue light on every rise and fall in the landscape down below.

We tried to linger on the top as we snacked and took photos, but the wind was quick to drive us away. If there's one element of the weather I truly despise, it's the wind. One can never wear enough layers to hide from the wind.

With snacks in hand, we decided it was time to retreat. I made my way back to the forest first, while Matt lagged behind, paying more attention to his snacks than keeping up.

He also took this photo of me, I guess. ;)

I had made it to the forest before I realized Matt wasn't behind me. It didn't take long to find him, but when I did, I laughed and made sure to take his photo. Photos or it didn't happen, right?

In the flat light and distracted by his almonds, he miscalculated one of the snow drifts and toppled over. When asked if he needed a hand, he told me, "Nah, I've got my snacks, I'm good."

The return trip was quick and uneventful. Hungry for more adventure, we decided to return back to town by a different route. What we found were not only plowed roads, but a winter cabin resort and two other Oregon snow parks. It appears we will need to explore the area more, doesn't it?

5.5 miles, 2:25, 995 ft gain.

Don't worry Southern Oregon, we'll be back!