High Sierra Topix

The forecast was for decent weather, so Sport and I took off on Good Friday morning to spend some time in the wilderness. We stopped at the Ranger Station to pick up our season passes and then get our permit.

The issuing officer, Eddy, commented, “You know you will be slogging through deep snow most of the way?”

“Oh, I don’t think so.” was my immediate response.

“Oh, Ok” was Eddy’s reply. I thought I could detect a strong sarcastic tone in his voice.

We parked at the locked gate to the campground at Loon and began the 7 mile hike to RBL. Loon is completely ice free and only a little higher than it was when we were here in February.
Eddy was right! There were a couple of patches of snow on the trail.
Most of the melting snow was creating streams on the old road leading down to BIL.
The sky did become a little threatening and we did get a little rain that evening.
The next day we woke and tried our hand at catching some trout. Sport got a couple of solid bites but we never did catch a fish. I guess this trip was one that could be classified as a “miss”.

Frankly though, we didn’t put much effort into fishing. We didn’t spend more than two hours total fishing. The sun was pretty high on the lake when we were fishing. I could sit here and type excuse after excuse (bright morning moon, swamp gas, weather balloons) but the fact is the fish just didn’t want to play this trip and that is why we call it “fishing”!

The scenery made it all worth the hike.
The stream was in full spring melt boom.
Fishing isn’t everything. We had other activities to occupy our time.

Like rock climbing! We did spend quite a bit of time playing around on some of the rocks. Here are some pictures of Sport “learning the ropes”.
Thank you for reading our TR.

-Russ

Thanks for sharing, Russ. This helps immensely with my planning.

A little anchor & rap practice, eh? Good stuff. Do you ever climb at the Leap?

Thank Russ for the delightful TR. Lovers Leap is a fun place to climb.

Cool TR! Thanks. Did you consider swinging back by the ranger station to show the ranger your pics (not to rub it in but just FYI)?

Tom_H wrote:
Did you consider swinging back by the ranger station to show the ranger your
pics (not to rub it in but just FYI)?

Yes, that is a good suggestion Tom. After my trips if there were any sections
that were difficult due to snow, rock slides, Spring run-off, or long dry sections for
example, I will always stop by or call the ranger station the next day. Many times
they will ask for folks, when getting a wilderness permit, to report back on the way
out because they lack any up to date information on back-country conditions during
the Spring season.

Hi,

From Colorado and will be in valley to visit family and planning to take a few days to backpack up to the Desolation Wilderness and fish the surrounding lakes in the Aloha valley. I'm not too familiar with this area but reading some of the reports and the snow low levels in the Sierras below 9kft, I wanted to get thoughts on if snow will be an issue around the 2nd week of June.

The pictures seem to indicate that snow would not be an issue by June???

Thanks
Dave

Hey Dave-

Since these pictures were taken we had a big storm come thorough and dump a bunch of snow up in the Sierras, 40 inches in some spots. I'm not sure how Desolation fared, but I would wager that they got a bunch. Before this latest storm I'd say that the second week of June would probably be fine, now...I think its anybody's guess.

Cheers!

--Fly Guy Dave

Thanks. I had heard about the storm but didn't think that it would drop that much snow this late in the season. I'll keep a close eye out and check the snow reports.

Keep an eye on trip reports and this site Dave: http://desowv.org/trail-conditions" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Feet,

“A little anchor & rap practice?” Yes, we are working on learning a little about climbing with ropes. We may find this to be a valuable skill during future peak attempts. We have been to Lovers Leap. This place is a little more crowded than we would like.

Tom,

“Did you consider swinging back by the ranger station to show the ranger your pics”

No. Frankly, I am not at all impressed with the information I get from the staff at this station. I have been given so much poor information in the past. I find it quite disappointing our public servants do not take their titles seriously. Simple information like “snow depth?” or “is a road open?” or “does the water work?” are usually answered inaccurately. Honestly, I get the feeling “they” do not consider this to be their job. I should stop with my comments here…suffice it to say I am not a person who believes “government is the solution”!

Maverick,

“…Many times they will ask for folks, when getting a wilderness permit, to report back on the way
out because they lack any up to date information on back-country conditions during
the Spring season.”

I have never been asked to share information. One of the reasons I didn’t stop back at the station is that it was Easter Sunday and the place was closed. It escapes me why the person in charge doesn’t encourage the employees to participate in forums such as HST. What a great way to find out up to date information. Or, consider this regarding snow levels…There are web sites one could use.

That bring me to Dave’s question, “The pictures seem to indicate that snow would not be an issue by June???” Dave, I find this web site to be helpful:

http://www.nohrsc.noaa.gov/interactive/ ... &js=1&uc=0" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

This is the snow level on Good Friday when we hiked in. What follows is the snow level after the storm Fly Guy Dave discussed.

http://www.nohrsc.noaa.gov/interactive/ ... &js=1&uc=0" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

This web site is not always accurate. Look at our report about climbing Red Lake Peak on May 3. This site shows over 2 feet of snow:

http://www.nohrsc.noaa.gov/interactive/ ... &js=1&uc=0" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Then look at the pictures in the report. I don’t find this site’s information to be accurate at higher elevations.

Dave, regarding the level of the snow around Aloha…I have an opportunity this Saturday. Vaca Maverick is going to Gramma’s in NV and Sport is working. I could grab my little girls and hike to the top of Ralston (or I could sit on the couch and watch TV, which I find more appealing). If I get enough encouragement it might motivate me to make the hike (normally I have Sport to kick me off the couch).

So, hopefully by Monday I can make a report with some pictures of Aloha and the surrounding are. Anybody wanna climb Ralston on Saturday?

-Russ