[pct-l] Recent Washington Snow and trail conditions for 2012

[Barry Teschlog]

Well, it sure has been dumping up here recently:

 - Stampede Pass (20 miles south of I-90 / Snoqualmie):  One week ago, on the 13th, the snow water content was 14.9 inches.  It's currently 20.6.  Snow depth went from 41 to 75 inches.

 - Stevens Pass (Highway 2 / Skykomish / Leavenworth / Dinsmores):  Same dates, the water content went from 16.7 to 21.8 inches and depth from 55 to 87 inches.

More troubling (from my perspective) is the wind and ice.  Lots of trees have been coming down in the lowlands around greater Seattle.  One can only hope the same isn't happening up on the trail.  However, if last winter is any guide, there will be TONS of trees down here in Washington.  Recall that last year, the USFS had to use explosives to clear several downed trees from the trail just north of Snoqualmie pass.  They were too dangerous to clear with chain or cross cut saws.  Some sections of the trail were never cleared - those trees will still be there for the crews in 6 months, in addition to what comes down this winter.  The USFS crews are all too limited in their numbers due to budget constraints and rely on volunteer crews to help clear the less complex trees, allowing their highly skilled crews to focus on the difficult ones.


Our volunteer group spent 10 days total doing log out, clearing over 100 trees blocking the trail (all with cross cuts) in 2011.  Thanks to the PCTA, we'll have several volunteers who will be chain saw certified for the upcoming maintenance season, in addition to our growing stable of cross cut certified sawyers.  We'll need volunteers, lots of them, to fill out the saw crews to clear the trail in a timely manner - 3 to 5 people per saw is ideal.  Only certified sawyers may operate the chain saws, but any crew member can be on the cross cuts under the sawyers supervision.  In addition to the actual cutting of the log, there is plenty of branches to cut and remove, rolling off the logs, and repairing the damaged tread once the tree is cleared.  


For those looking  to volunteer on a PCTA trail crew on the trail in the northern part of Washington, contact the North 350 Blades at north350blades at gmail.com and ask to be put on the e-mail list or find us on Facebook by searching for the name.  We've focused mostly on the part of the trail immediately south of Snoqualmie Pass, however this coming year we'll be expanding our reach to other parts of the trail between White Pass and the Canadian border.  Washington Trails Association will also put many crews onto the PCT this coming summer, on single day crews, self supported back country crews and fully supported week long volunteer vacations (they'll be posting the list of these latter types of trips in a few weeks).  They can be found at WTA.org.  In all cases, no experience is necessary and all tools plus hard hats are provided.  Priorities are always safety first, then having a positive experience, and then getting some work done.


Please consider volunteering with your local trail crew - check out the PCTA site and click "volunteer" on the right for more information.  You can also find your local volunteer group from the PCTA site by picking "About the PCTA" then "Regional Groups".