[pct-l] Oregon

[Judson Brown]

Snow pack to some degree is more or less guaranteed in early July, where
most places > 6000 ft. will have uniform coverage. Only in extremely low
snow years would you be able to navigate the Oregon PCT in July without
encountering snow to some degree. In heavy snow years, parts of the PCT
don't become snow-free until late August. Your own comfort with that will
dictate whether you consider this a big deal or not.

And as mentioned by other posters, to say mosquitoes are bad in July in the
Oregon Cascades is a gross understatement. Except on the windiest ridges,
all of your time will be spent in your tent, or in pants/long sleeve
shirt/headnet. As a Central Oregonian, I do not EVER backpack in the
Cacades in July anymore.

bunnyslayer

On Fri, Jan 25, 2013 at 12:40 PM, CHUCK CHELIN <steeleye at wildblue.net>wrote:

> Good afternoon, Smartin,
>
> Oregon doesn’t get much buzz about snow among seasonal PCT thru-hikers
> because they usually arrive in the state in August. Depending upon the
> particular year, July may be hikeable for most, or it may also involve
> endless miles of constant snowpack.  It might be of some help to review
> http://www.wcc.nrcs.usda.gov/cgibin/westsnow.pl monthly to get an idea how
> this year will unfold. With only January to view it looks snowpack may be
> on the heavy side.
>
> Unless you are experienced with, and have an appetite for, snowpack travel
> and navigation you will probably be better off if you can/will delay until
> August.  PCT hikers think Oregon’s mosquitoes are bad, but they aren’t
> hiking when they are they are at their worst.  The worst of the mosquitoes
> appear in the wet spots associated with the receding snowpack in late-June
> and through July so they are much reduced by August.
>
> Enjoy your trip,
>
> Steel-Eye
>
> -Hiking the Pct since before it was the PCT – 1965
>
> http://www.trailjournals.com/steel-eye
> http://www.trailjournals.com/SteelEye09/
>
> On Wed, Jan 23, 2013 at 8:31 PM, shawna martin <martinshawna at hotmail.com
> >wrote:
>
> > Planning on hiking Oregon in July with a friend! Any advice is needed and
> > welcomed.
> >
> > Smartin
> >
> >
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