[pct-l] To be early or not at Kennedy Meadows?

[AsABat@4Jeffrey.Net (AsABat)]

Tom thinks:
>
> Looking at southern snow pillows does little to predict the passes further
north.
>
> There IS a snow pillow on Bishop Pass thatw ill be typical of the PCT
passes.

The "Bishop Pass" snow pillow is actually down in Dusy Basin. I watched the
snow levels in late July 1998 and saw it was clear before I left for a JMT
section. After climbing ice up Bishop Pass and slogging through snow into
Dusy Basin, we saw the snow pillow in a sunny meadow. The only place there
was no snow was on the "pillow" itself! Elsewhere the snow was 1 to 2 feet
deep, deeper in the trees. Snow continued another mile or so down canyon.
Palisade Lakes to Mather Pass was solid ICE and it took us 7 hours to climb
3 miles.

Point being, just because the snow pillow goes to zero doesn't mean the
trail isn't still snowed in. It might just not be as deep.

AsABat