PCT snow info - Appalachian Trail

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#1

i am hiking the triple crown this year and need some input/advice on present snow levels on the trail and predicted snow/snow melt on the trail.

early on in the snow season the pacific northwest was snow deprived… is this still the case and what will the snow levels be like in oregan and washington in june/july? i was in oregan in early july last year. can i expect similar snow levels but for june this year?

if the snow is still very low on the northern half of the trail i was planning to start on the 3rd of may. this would mean getting to the sierras by 20thish of may. what sort of snow coverage can i expect in comparison to being there last year in mid june?

how far north can i expect to hit snow after toulumne meadows?

the plan is to put up with the snow in the sierras providing the snow further north should still be low. could you please base your advice on a time scale of 40 mile days based on leaving kennedy on the 25th of may.

all input and advice is very much appreciated and best of luck to you all on the trails this year.

many thanks, “SQUEAKY”

“SQUEAKY”

#2

We’ve been getting a fair amount of snow in the northwest over the last couple of weeks. Snow levels are high enough that you would definitely not be making 40 mile days now given route finding and snowshoeing. However, what things will be like in June isn’t possible to predict. We could get a big warm, dry spell and melt the snow in the mountains in a days. Or, we could get more snow. However, I think hiking in the Cascades at the end of May is far more sane than trying to force the Sierras. Snow melt in the Sierra will be very bad and make the creek fords very difficult and potentially life threatening (Kerrick Creek, Bear Creek). Snow will choke the passes and slow you down a lot because you’ll have to deal with route finding (trail will be buried, no or few blazes). Moreover, you’ll may have to go in on snowshoes, but perhaps not. You could force the Sierras then, but I suspect that even a 15 or 20 mile day will be very challlenging. Putting up low 20 mile days in the Sierra in 2003 was hard enough, and I was moving a bit faster than the main pack at that point.

In 2003, I ran into significant, though not troublesome, snow all the way to Sierra City. It wasn’t bad enough to reallly be a problem, but this year is different. You could have bad snow, given your early date, all the way to Dunsmuir.

If I was going to try something like this, I would instead hike north to SoCal, then flip up to Manning and hike south. Or, try the CDT southbound first. Snow isn’t super high in the northern Rockies. Hike south to New Mexico, the tackle the PCT southbound. I think you might have a better chance of averaging 40 miles per day this way.

Suge

#3

Follow this link for info on current snow depth on the PCT relative to April 1 averages: http://delnorteresort.com/cgi-bin/postHoler. There’s a link at the very bottom of this page to a similar chart for the CDT.

Good luck with your plans.

Snowbird

#4

thanks for the info guys.

suge i totally overlooked the fords! i assumed they would be lower going in early. flip flopping is not an option though, i want to thru hike the trails one after the other. i wouldnt mind an early start if the bad snow was in the sierra region only, soungs like it is to far north for an early start. thinking about mid may now?

“SQUEAKY”