[pct-l] Fuler Ridge Report (long)

[maurer at earthlink.net (maurer@earthlink.net)]

On April 15th I hiked out of Idyllwild to determine trail conditions 
between Strawberry Jct and Fuller Ridge along the PCT. Photos of this 
trip an be found at http://community.webshots.com/album/323389676zJqcYy


Here are my findings:

1. I hiked up out of Idyllwild along the Deer Springs trail from 6600' 
to the junction with the PCt at Strawberry junction at 8000'. During 
this climb I found no snow whatsoever to 7700', and then only small 
patches of snow to 8000'. I was on a S/SE facing slope during this 
portion of the hike. One could assume that similar slopes/elevation 
north of hwy 74 and south of this point would have similar conditions.
2. At Strawberry jct I found the trail intersection sign and 2 PCT posts 
easily. The area was under patchy snow (see photos) but was fairly easy 
to navigate. The next leg of the PCT travels 2.3 miles north to the 
intersection with the Marion Mountain trail. On this section I began to 
lose the PCT with some regularity. I would guess that between 8000' and 
8700' the trail was over 50% fully covered in snow. At 8690' I saw the 
trail for the last time. I could see that next to large rocks and trees, 
the trail was cover by 2-4' of snow at that point. I began to hike 
largely cross country using map/compass and GPS to try and find the 
trail, but to no avail.
3. I continued hiking along my GPS points toward Fuller Ridge. As I 
trended eastward toward the Deer Springs stream and the Fuller Ridge jct 
the navigation was not tremendously difficult, but there was absolutely 
no trail to follow since I was now on a north face. As I approached the 
Deer Spring stream I could hear it but could not see it - it was buried. 
I followed the drainage up hill and eventually found a water source. The 
source I found was very near where the PCT crosses the stream according 
to my GPS. At this point the snow depth next to the stream was 
approximately 8' (see photos).
4. I continued along a route northward toward Fuller Ridge in an attempt 
to find the trail intersection. After several attempt to locate it 
(using GPS) I realized the trail signs were under my feet - completely 
buried in snow. Because of traveling cross country in deep snow my speed 
had slowed to about 1 MPH. I was running out of day and needed to be 
back at my house early Saturday AM so I chose to hike to the edge of 
Fuller Ridge, then return to Strawberry Jct. I would have needed 4-5 
hours to get to Black Mountain CG at this speed, and would not have been 
able to get back to my car by the time I needed to. I also figured that, 
having traveled above Fuller Ridge elevation-wise on both south and 
north facing slopes I could give some indication of conditions along the 
Ridge.
5. On the return trip I noted that there were 6 water sources between 
the Fuller Ridge intersection and Strawberry Jct. The 2 higher elevation 
crossings were buried beneath the snow.
6. While at 8900' on the descent I came upon a Scandinavian couple who 
had followed my tracks north from Strawberry jct and were preparing to 
navigating Fuller Ridge using map and compass. I gave them map map 
showing the trail along Fuller Ridge in extreme close up. Since we could 
easily see the ridge from this point I'm sure they could find their way 
along it to Castle Rocks, traverse the slot and head down toward Black 
Mountain. So for the record, at least one groups has gone through this 
section thus far.

Extrapolations

1 The conditions will obviously be more snow free approximately 3 weeks 
from now, when the Kick Off group comes through. The Scandinavian couple 
mentioned they had some snow on the section between Saddle jct and 
Strawberry jct, but they made it OK. I would guess that by the time the 
group comes through, this section will be snow free since it faces south.
2. I'd guess too that the trail will be visible to at least 8500', maybe 
more by the time the group comes through. The challenge in my opinion, 
will be the north slope between the Marion mtn trail intersection and 
Fuller ridge. I'd guess there will still be snow here, maybe deep snow. 
However, good map skills and some basic equipment should get the pack 
through this section. If they can trend north then east after the Marion 
Mtn intersection, continuing to gain elevation, they should find 
themselves crossing the Deer Spring drainage with some ease 
(navigationally), and will SEE Fuller Ridge on their left the entire 
time. From the Deer Springs stream they can continue north out onto the 
ridge and visually follow the ridge toward Castle rocks. There will 
likely still be some snow here but 3 weeks from now it should be 
manageable if traversed after mid morning..
3. The tough part in my opinion will be the 2 or so miles from Castle 
Rocks to Black Mountain. This section is forested, on the north side of 
the ridge and will therefore hold snow the longest. However, the Black 
mountain campground is at about 7500' and should be warming up/melting 
well by then.

Equipment

I carried a GPS, ice ax, crampons and snowshoes. I only used the GPS. 
Since I came up a south slope the snow I eventually encountered was soft 
, and by the time I rounded to the north facing slopes the warmth of the 
day had softened the snow to where I could get good traction but not 
posthole. On my descent I pot holed often in the snow on the south slopes.

If I were a thru hiker I'd want to have crampons and an ice ax with me 
through this section. I might consider as a bare minimum hiking poles 
and some sort of "stableicers". This area will experience freeze/thaw 
every day, so the snow will be rock hard in the morning. The first 2.5 
miles of Fuller Ridge have some tricky parts, with exposure. Going 
through there early in the morning will be tricky. I think what I'd do 
is cover the 12 miles between Saddle jct and Black Mountain in one day. 
For those who resupply in Idyllwild using Saddle jct (versus the hwy 74 
hitchhike), you can start out on largely south facing slopes in the AM, 
reaching the north facing section just before the Fuller Ridge 
intersection by around lunch. continuing along, you will cross over 
Castle rocks by mid afternoon and will have softer snow on the north 
face of the ridge in the Afternoon to traverse down to Black Mountain 
cg. There may be a bit of postholing along here but at least you'd have 
traversed the south face of Fuller Ridge (the first 2.5 miles) after it 
has had a chance to soften up.

As a final thought, I was hoping to provide a cut trail, or even some 
footprints that could be followed by the thru-hiker pack leaving from 
the kick off. Unfortunately the snow was so deep that my tracks would be 
gone within a day or two. I wish I could have helped out more in this 
regard but conditions would not allow it.

I hope this helps. Greg, let me know if you want me to cover this at the 
Kick off - I'll try to blow up some photo's and maps.


Mike Maurer
Gossamer Gear