[pct-l] Planning and start dates

Sun Jul 26 08:38:56 CDT 2009

Very good points, Donna. Know your limits and what to expect and be 
prepared.

No matter when you enter the early season high country, at some point on 
your thru hike north the snow will be awful to walk through. Note the use of 
the term "through." Depending on the temps. and cloud cover, the intensity 
of the melt turns any base into mush such that you're wallowing and posting 
at best. In the morning, as Donna said, is the best time to walk "on" or 
over the night-hardened snow base. Yes, the suncups are nasty, requiring 
walking on their ridges or inner bottoms, but they don't usually go on 
forever. Make your miles in the mornings to lower elevations and find open 
trail down there in the afternoon.

>From the experiences of freighting on skis, snowshoeing with packs, and 
hiking with big boots along the Muir during the months of January thru 
October, I will add that the avalanche risk is highest immediately after 
snowfall for as much as a few days (depending on your location and the 
amount of the dump). This holds true for heavy snowfall no matter the date. 
However, the likelihood of avalanches falls off as the days get longer, 
warmer, and the pack begins to consolidate. Slab avalanches are a different 
story, but with a little awareness of the snow pack conditions where you are 
and some care in route-finding, the snow-covered High Sierra is not much of 
a danger. This all means that it is riskier there before April that after 
it.

Mtnned
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "dsaufley" <dsaufley at sprynet.com>
To: "'Postholer'" <public at postholer.com>; <pct-l at backcountry.net>
Sent: Saturday, July 25, 2009 8:44 AM
Subject: Re: [pct-l] Planning and start dates

>I would further add that consolidated snow is your friend -- melting,
> rotting out, suncupped snow is simply awful (and scary).  IMHO, leaving KM
> in mid-June puts you in the worst of conditions in the average year.  You
> may face snow storms in June.  Sure, there's generally less snow on the
> ground, but the snow that's there is rotting out under your feet, creating
> post-hole and sun cup conditions. The streams are swollen with all the 
> melt.
> So, the warmer it gets, the worse the conditions when you do have to walk 
> on
> snow.  High season fair weather for the Sierras is universally considered 
> to
> be August, well past the time the thrus are there.
>
> I say this with the caveat that from what I'm told (certainly not from my
> own experience) if you leave too early, you risk avalanche danger. Those
> types of conditions are only for the real experts.  Know your limits and 
> be
> prepared.
>
> Some folks just want to have a nice walk without big challenges. They 
> don't
> want to be in bad weather, and they don't want to route find. Getting 
> those
> kinds of conditions does require a later start, but it also compromises 
> the
> chance of completing a thru hike in a single season.
>
> To walk 2,650 miles through wilderness conditions will at times be a great
> challenge.  If that the goal, and one should expect, be prepared for, and 
> be
> ready to face those challenges. To approach the trail with any less leaves
> the individual and rescue personnel at risk.
>
> L-Rod
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: pct-l-bounces at backcountry.net [mailto:pct-l-bounces at backcountry.net]
> On Behalf Of ned at pacificcrestcustombuilders.com
> Sent: Friday, July 24, 2009 11:14 AM
> To: Postholer; pct-l at backcountry.net
> Subject: Re: [pct-l] Planning and start dates
>
> Starting earlier than mid-May, while increasing your chances for 
> encounters
> with snow, enables a longer schedule and shorter daily mileages with the
> goal of reaching Canada before the snow flies in earnest, enough to stop
> your trip short.
>
> All of this is based on weather and precipitation averages. The year a 
> hiker
>
> attempts to complete a thru hike the snow pack may be heavy or light. This
> is one of the chances you take when deciding to do the trail and beginning
> your planning a year in advance. You deal with what you get. Just be
> prepared for what may lie ahead, snow and creek crossing issues, should
> things be bad. If you do find a lot of snow to deal with, some of the 
> skills
>
> learned through "mountaineering" can literally save your life, at least
> prevent injury. Yes, we all prefer a dry trail to have a comfortable hike
> and make the miles.
>
> However, if leaving late enough to make certain of dry trail throughout
> means that you have a narrower window of completion (to when Canadian 
> snows
> can stop your trip), thus impelling you to hike faster or longer days to
> make the distance, then that is your choice. Who knows, maybe you can't 
> take
>
> the time for a longer trip or you like the challenge of long, fast days.
> HYOH.
>
> We are simply showing that if you leave earlier than the accepted optimal
> date, you might be able to reduce your daily mileages and have an easier
> trip. It's highly likely that you're going to run into snow no matter when
> you leave, so you'll have a little more to deal with each day in the high
> country. If you get a late winter season storm, or find snow in SoCal as
> well, since you decided to leave early, you are prepared for it with the
> right gear and experience.
>
> It is in the best interest of the PCT thru-hiking community to be informed
> of the realities of the trail. Who starts such an expedition without 
> finding
>
> out what the obstacles and hardships will be? A thru hike is backpacking 
> to
> the max! If you wish to have a safe and fun journey, you'll want to know
> what it takes to do it, what food and gear is available, and what you need
> to learn how to do to pull it off.
>
> For me, I wanted to go slower than hikers do today, so I started "early." 
> I
> could take the time. I postponed starting college until January. I 
> graduated
>
> High School early (in December). By doing these things, I opened up the
> entire time period to stay on the trail. It was important for me to have 
> the
>
> time in my schedule for leisurely morning starts, exploratory hikes to
> lateral lakes during the day, and sunset dinners in camp in my sleeping 
> bag,
>
> hot tea in hand, thanking God for every minute of this thru hike 
> experience.
>
> I knew that I might hit snow, so I took a Sierra Club winter outing 
> course,
> did weekend trips of my own around Donner Summit during the winter 
> preceding
>
> my start, and geared up for inclement weather. Of course my pack was heavy
> at first; I couldn't even pick it up by myself. I started with low daily
> miles and grew stronger as I went. By the time I reached Weldon and the 
> Kern
>
> Plateau, the weight of my pack didn't matter. Taking on snowshoes and ice
> axe was no big deal. That was how I wanted to hike the trail. My "style" 
> of
> hiking was my choice.
>
> For everyone contemplating planning a thru hike sometime in their future,
> take all the advice given and apply it to your needs and desires for your
> "style." First, do a lot of hiking to find out what your "style" is, how 
> you
>
> want to do your own hike, what you want to get out of each and every day.
> Only you can decide what your priorities are.
>
> You can be fairly certain that the Canadian snows will begin sometime 
> after
> September. They have stopped quite a few hikers in their tracks. Many, 
> being
>
> frustrated that they are so close, try to regain the trail and push north
> only to find the cold and wet too much. The rough terrain of northern
> Washington is no place to be slogging through snow. As I said in a post
> yesterday, pick your "last-ditch" end date, decide how many miles per day 
> is
>
> right for your style, and backtrack to your start date. Be realistic about
> expected weather and snow and creek conditions. If you don't know what
> "realistic" is, start reading the Trail Journals of the realistic
> experiences of those who have gone before. How you'll deal with what they
> encountered is your choice. When thoroughly informed, you are armed with 
> the
>
> knowledge upon which to make your own decisions for what you want for your
> trail experience. Don't romanticize the trail. Don't go into it blindly.
> Read up. Talk to those who have done it. Speak up with your questions on
> this Forum.
>
> Mtnned
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "Postholer" <public at postholer.com>
> To: <pct-l at backcountry.net>
> Sent: Friday, July 24, 2009 10:11 AM
> Subject: [pct-l] KM Date, Ray Day, snow hiking
>
>
>> Thru-hiking is not about mountaineering. Most thru-hikers are not trained
>> for that nor do they need to be.
>>
>> Hiking big miles on early season snow is exhausting, time consuming,
>> requires more gear, food and good route finding skills.
>>
>> The concept of "Ray Day" or June 15th is not arbitrary. Based on an
>> AVERAGE
>> snow year, departing KM on the 15th implies a hiker will have to deal 
>> with
>> MINIMAL or TOLERABLE streches of snow travel, ie, traveling across 6 
>> miles
>> of snowy Muir Pass as opposed to an exhausting, winter wonderland, all 
>> day
>> route finding excursion.
>>
>> Further, the earlier you start you increase the probability of dealing
>> with
>> late winter weather. Starting in March or early April pretty much
>> garuntees
>> you'll deal with snow in the SoCal mountains as well as the Sierra, not 
>> to
>> mention colder temps, more rain and snow.
>>
>> Why are earlier start dates being promoted? Most folks are not prepared
>> for
>> this. Is this really in the best interest of the PCT thru-hiking
>> community?
>>
>> -postholer
>>
>> ------------------------------------
>> Trails : http://Postholer.Com
>> Journals : http://Postholer.Com/journal
>> Mobile : http://Postholer.Com/mobi
>>
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>
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