[pct-l] CA-OR Border Snow

[Nathan Miller]

I just returned from OR Sct. B, so I have some on-the-trail observations about the snow.

Siskiyou Summit is completely clear, although there's a lot visible looking toward Mt. Ashland (you can see a web cam of the ski area at www.mtashland.com).  The trail is completely clear from there until a mile or so north of the fenced spring north of Pilot Rock.  Then there's maybe a mile and a half over which the trail is at least 80% obscured by snow.  There are reliable trail blazes here and it wasn't too hard to follow.

After that, the trail is again completely clear until most of the way up Brush Mt. north of Howard Prairie Reservoir.  From near where the trail crests the shoulder of Brush Mt., the trail is at least 90% obscured and is completely buried on Old Baldy.  At one point, I walked over a 5-ft.-tall gate that was barely sticking out of the snow.  Trail markers on trees grow increasingly unreliable and vanished completely after that gate.  If you're hiking this section soon, do NOT follow my tracks.  I made the mistake of trying to rely on the topography to navigate and wound up circling around to the west side of the mt., when the trail dives off a northern spur ridge.  Only after deciding to climb up to the top for a visual did I realize what I'd done.  THEN I took out the compass, which I SHOULD have done back at the gate.  Then I kept an eye on that as I followed the general direction of the trail--occasionally getting a glimpse of Brown Mt. due north--and
 still ended up rolling right over the PCT without knowing it was there and wound up on a gravel road a half mile west of the trail, which I didn't realize until I road-walked up Dead Indian Rd.  Having had it up to HERE with snow, I road-walked to Lake of the Woods and then back along Hwy. 140 to the trailhead (a decision possibly influenced by low hydration and low blood-sugar [I don't like to stop sometimes, hence my trail name]).  And, yes, I post-holed a lot AND in shorts!  Oh, and I saw day-old cougar tracks headed south!
Moral of the story, use your compass, or have Halfmile's waypoints, or BOTH!

-Nate the Trail Zombie