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[pct-l] Sierra Snow

radney@ix.netcom.com wrote:

>>When you reach Kennedy Meadows if the snow outlook is still unfavorable
and DANGEROUS an alternative would be to hike out Cottonwood Pass to Lone
Pine. You could then take the bus to Tahoe and hike north and avoid the
heavy snowfall in the Sierras.<<

This may be an alternative, but unlikely to be a snow-free alternative.
Last time I checked the northern Sierras were higher above average than the
southern sierras.  Even thought the elevations are a little lower, the snow
tends to linger a little more in the north.  In early July of '95 I left the
PCT at Lone Pine and headed for Sierra City.  It was nearly total snow just
around the bend on Sierra Buttes.  I ended up going back to the Sierras at
Lone Pine a couple of weeks later, only to go home after deciding I lost the
mental edge to hike all the way to Canada.  For those thinking of taking the
bus to Oregon, I heard today the Southern Oregon Cascades have above average
snow.  I guess they caught just enough of the latest storms that hit
California.  They are also predicting a wet spring, so the melt may come
late in Oregon.

In '95 a lot of hikers flip-flopped around the Sierras.  Very few came back
to finish their hikes.  If I were faced with the same situation again I
would hang out at Kennedy Meadows and plow through the Sierras, or at least
give it my best shot!

roger carpenter

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