Mammoth Mountain will almost certainly break their all time record for winter snowfall (records at the resort have been kept for 41 years).
http://www.mammothmountain.com/MyMammoth
& Here’s an amazing slideshow from Lake Tahoe:
An unusual back to back heavy snow year - kinda like '05 & '06…
The glissading should be a blast this year 
freebird
yes, thats how its looking…nothing against you snow lovers, but i was hoping for a dry, relatively warm hike. Now it appears that I’m gonna be learning to glissade and snowshoe. probably an ice ax will be required too. ah well, live and learn. still, no other place I’d rather be.
barbecue
It’s certainly putting last year’s “high snow levels” in perspective, that’s for sure:
http://cdec.water.ca.gov/cgi-progs/snow/PLOT_SWC
lakewood
Did 21 day JMT N-S in July 09. Shoes barely got wet and I didn’t even take a map. Planning a late May early June JMT this year. I’ll need a top map, but what do y’all think about the snow shoes. I’d hate to carry an additional 5lbs. if it isn’t necessary. How many miles through unpacked snow? Thanks.
jet
well I’ve got next to zero snow hiking experience, but I think I’ll be walking in the tracks of those who have gone before me. So, maybe I wont need the snowshoes or crampons.
hopefully I wont be following the tracks of a group of lost or otherwise oriented hikers…
barbecue
jet - Normally by June the Sierra Snow is consolidated enough to walk on it without snow shoes in the morning when the air temp is still cold. On my three PCT hikes (late May/1st week of June leaving Kennedy Meadows NOBO), I never felt that I needed snow shoes (or crampons), but I was careful to time the passes so that I would hit them by mid-morning so that I wouldn’t have to post-hole for miles in the afternoon when the sun turns the consolidated snow into slush.
Last year I cleared Forester Pass by late morning & I watched a guy behind me post holing for over a mile as he approached the pass. So… timing is everything, like in many other departments of life…
freebird
Freebird-Thank you, great advice. Pass a day, camp at the base. With this heavy snow year, what do you think about the crossings? Am I gonna be washing the minerals? Dry firewood for occasional fire? Gators or snow pants? Mosquitoes? Trying to keep my weight at 45-50lbs. I’m quickly finding that colder temp= more weight. 0 bag,3 season tent. Would you recommend a tarp? Thank you.
jet
Jet - there are too many variables to predict anything at this point… other than there might be quite a bit of snow unless its an exceptionally hot & dry Spring.
Hiking is such a personal thing - everybody has to figure out what works for themselves. Some general advice: I personally would definitely carry an ice-axe this year. even if its not used in a life-threatening fall, it comes in very handy for chopping steps in hard snow, climbing steep snow chutes, and of course for braking during glissades.
One other thought: camping at the base of the passes can be very exposed & cold. I normally camp below treeline in a protected spot and hike the frozen snow to the base of the passes in the early morning. By the time I reached the steep ascents of the major passes (Forester, Mather, Pinchot, etc.), the snow was soft enough to kick steps. When the snow is rock hard on the passes, you have to chop steps & a fall could be really hazardous if you don’t self-arrest immediately.
Happy Trails!
freebird
Thank you. I understand the variables and personal preference. Planning on camping in the tree lines. Just trying to get an idea of the environment… too early to tell. I’m figuring that run off is going to be high based on time of year and snow pack, but I don’t know what high is. Ankle, knee, or waist? Historically too cold for the mosquitoes(little winged personal trainers)? Could there be a scenario where the rivers are unforgeable without a line?
Happy Trails!
jet
Mosquitoes: varies considerably every year, but normally the first hatch is mid June (I conferred with Billy Goat about this last year - he’s hiked the PCT about 7 times) at lower elevations. And the ‘mosquito line’ rises in elevation as the snow melts off.
River Fording: Runoff depends a lot on air temp., so early morning the water level is normally considerably lower than late afternoon. At difficult fords, I always spend the time to go up & downriver to find a natural log bridge or a safer fording location. (I would say ‘high’ water levels are waist deep or higher - some PCT/JMT hikers have had to swim across rivers during extreme runoff.)
If you get to a raging, dangerous stream without a natural bridge or safe ford, camp on the near bank & wait for lower water levels in the morning. The water level drop can be dramatic (sometimes well over a foot). If its still too high in the morning (unlikely, but possible), then retreat to an alternate route or bail out to a town on a side route. This is one of the reasons why its a good idea to pack some extra food for an early season High Sierra traverse.
Have a great hike!
freebird
I live in Ridgecrest and have a direct view of the eastern slope of Olancha. I don’t recall ever seeing so much persistent snow on the eastern slope. Granted, Olancha eastern slope snow may be different from that encountered on the PCT from Crabtree north, but a good bet would be that there will be considerable snow on the PCT over the passes until late June or even into July.
Booger
I already mentioned this in another post, but with further reflection I can assure you I really mean it.
I was very happy to have the Camp 6-point crampons for the longer snow sections. They are exceptionally light, attach securely to any shoe, and really helped me stay on the ridges of the suncups during the morning freeze.
$60 well spent for a snow year like this one.
I second all the talk of timing being the most key; so true!
Hans Berg
With trail runners, I’ve always found that instep crampons tend to shift laterally off the underside of the shoe during sidehill traverses. Are the 6-pointers more stable? What’s the perceived advantage over, say, Kahtoola Microspikes?
blisterfree