[pct-l] (Guest Post) Northern Washington in June

[goforth at cio.net (Joanne Lennox)]

Will you need snowshoes in JUne??  Probably not.  As one poster said the
snow is often consolidated by then;HOWEVER, I have been in the mountains
here when the snow is not consolidated in June.  Which means that by noon
you will be wallowing in snow.  I would keep the snowshoe option open by
having them in a place that they could be sent if needed.  Keep looking at
the april and may temperatures and melt rate to get a sense of whether the
snow is consolidated.  If it is, you will love it.  It is not at all like
the Sierras, which is much warmer. In Washington when the Snow is right,
you can MOTOR.  It gives a great sense of freedom, and I used to do a bunch
of climbs early season because it was a great way to save on knees, avoid
brush, and do some things that could be done much easier in steep snow.
Brush up on the ice ax arrest, you likely will need it.

Avalanches are possible if the snow is not consolidated or if there has
been recent snow over an icey layer.  learn to recognize slopes prone to
avalance and conditions that cause them, transist such areas quickly if at
all. On ridges, Cornices can be dangerous - stay away from the edge.

The ususally scenario is that if the snow is consolidated, you start out
early morning with crampons and as the snow and air warms then you can kick
step.  It varies a lot in trees and on north-south exposure and slopes.
Moats are a danger in some rock-snow transitions.
Goforth

----------
> From: Mike Lilly <mjlilly@mac.com>
> To: pt@hikertrash.com; PCT-L@mailman.backcountry.net
> Subject: Re: [pct-l] (Guest Post) Northern Washington in June
> Date: Sunday, February 08, 2004 10:28 AM
> 
> > Any ideas about what to expect about this year's snow pack?
> 
> Currently the snow pack in the Cascades is near the long term average.
See:
> 
>
http://www.ocs.orst.edu/pub_ftp/weather/snow_reports/2004/snow_report.040120

> 
> That means there is much more snow than we have experienced in recent dry
> years. Of course it is too soon to make reliable predictions for June.
> 
> For anecdotal evidence, I can tell you that in early January we had about
6"
> of snow in Portland for the first time in years, and yesterday at the
> Oregon-Washinton border, there were  still patches of snow on the trails
> almost all the way down to the river in the Columbia River Gorge, and the
> elevation there is only a few hundred feet.
> 
> Mike
> 
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