High Sierra Topix

1 - No mosquitoes or if there are some, but not biting yet
2 - Very light during the day, moderate at dawn and dusk
3 - Moderate during the day, heavy at dawn and dusk
4 - Heavy during the day, heavy at dawn and dusk
5 - Unbearable all day, no breaks, cannot eat outside of tent. If you stop, hundreds
will descend on you; when looking thru a camera viewfinder, you see more skeeters than
lake. If you slapped your arm, you'd smear blood from all the dead gorged bodies

Please do not post questions or ask about a particular area in this thread. Also, include where you went, with dates included, in the "Subject" box. Thanks

Between Crabtree TH and Jewelry Lake, and between Groundhog Meadow and and the outlet of Jewelry Lake confluence with Buck Meadow Creek - no mosquitoes.

Just talked to the folks at Prather Ranger Station regarding mosquitoes, etc. going out of Courtright Reservoir into upper Kings River areas...The road is open (road to Wishon has been for a while now) but still snow around the reservoir area and much more up into the higher elevations. However, even with freezing nights the mosquitoes are ignoring the temperatures and are out and about doing their thing there. *[Elevation = 8,150 ft.]

This fits with my past experiences of wondering what the blazes mosquitoes are doing starting to appear when I'm at 10,000 ft. in late May during drier years, yet there is still snow all around and lakes are just in the process of ice breaking up, etc. They kind of know that the days are longer and it is feeding time, so they stagger out and try their luck.
So, looks like an early "pre-mosquitoes" trip for me is not going to happen this year due to the weird cold May and the drizzle, light snow showers, etc. that have been hitting the Sierras for the past month. Once it starts getting warmer consistently I expect the mosquitoes may explode into catch-up mode.

I will be following reports once people start getting into the high country proper to see how this season shakes out.

Best, Michaelzim

Horseshoe Meadow - Trail Pass- Cottonwood Pass - Chicken Spring Lake

May 25th - 26th - 27th

No Mosquitoes at any location from 10,000ft to 11,250ft

5/31-6/1: Lodgepole--> Mt. Silliman--> Twin Lakes--> Lodgepole. 1- Didn't see a single mosquito the whole time.

Mosquitoes are generally not a problem in the Northern Yosemite region. I was annoyed at the trailhead at 5000 feet but they were entirely absent at 7000 feet and above. We also had a couple of very cold nights during this trip and this may have slowed them down. I would guess that Kibbie Lake (6500) will be a problem in one to two weeks, with higher elevations to follow in succession.

5/28 Kibbie Lake 6513. 2. There were a few small and non aggressive mosquitoes at dawn and dusk.
5/29-June 1 Cherry Creek 7100, Boundary Lake region 7500, Mercur Lakes 7800. 1 I used no repellent and was not bitten or annoyed for 5 days.

I was also all around Cottonwood Lakes basin, John Muir Lake, and both Army passes, 5/26-/5/28. Not a single mosquito. 1

Grand Canyon Tuolumne.

5/31 = 0 very breezy, cold night Tuolumne Meadows to top of Waterwheel Falls
6/1 = 1 much warmer, just a few at 1.5 miles upstream from Pate Valley (in-your-face gnats=2 ants=3, rattlesnakes=3)
6/2 =1 very warm, a few actual mosquitoes at top of California Falls, (in-your-face gnats=3)
6/3= 1-2 more mosquitoes, enough at rest breaks to need head net

In spite of annoyance of gnats and mosquitoes, none were yet biting. The hatch has just started. Could be ugly in a week.

Dayhiked Johnson Canyon just east of Donner Pass on 6/3/18. Elevations 6400 to 7600 feet. South-facing canyon. No snow at all, even at top. Warm and calm. Zero mosquitoes.
-Phil