Northern CA Trip June 21-24

[dave54]

Hwy 89 through LAVO won't be open by then. Still battling 13 feet snowpack on the road clearing. The road to Butte Lake was supposed to start clearing today. By late June there will still be significant snow. Everything east of the main Park road burned. Much of it high intensity nuked. The only places in that end of the state I could suggest is Ishi Wilderness. It is snow free now. By late June it could start getting hot, and the stream crossings will still be high.

[TxAggie]

I still think Kennedy Lake in Emigrant may be do-able if you do not mind walking on some snow. The road to Kennedy Meadow is often open well before Sonora Pass opens. You definitely could hammock there and there may even be dry patches to put a tent on. It all depends on the speed of the melt.

If you can get a permit, North Rim in Yosemite should be OK as well as LYV or a LYV pass-through. You could day-hike up the Merced or day-hike Pohono to Glacier Point and back from LYV. I doubt the cables will be installed- once they are, LYV fills up quicky.

I’m keeping an eye on Kennedy Meadows, right now it looks like that will be our first choice. I was able to reserve a permit for Yosemite Creek so I’m watching the snow melt there pretty closely. At the current melt rate, it looks like that route down to El Cap should be doable, we’ll just need to be mindful of the snow. We’ll have at least two nights, and possibly a third if needed.

Thanks again for your insight.

[giantbrookie]

In addition to the alternatives noted by others on this thread, NW Desolation Wilderness and vicinity out of Loon Lake is already thawed and by June 21-24 there will be room to roam further than Buck Island-Rockbound-Rubicon Reservoir. On the west flank your destination of last year (is Laurel-Vernon etc.) is already thawed albeit with some snow in the way at the Beehive and by June 21-24 all that will be gone and there will be room to get further, but you probably don't want to go back to the same place. Kibbie Lake will be thawed by June 21-24 and by then the way should be clear to hike further NE up Kibbie Ridge to the beautiful, but fishless, lakes such as Boundary Lake, Spotted Fawn L, etc. and to get a look at Cherry Creek in southern Emigrant Wilderness which should be absolutely savage with high runoff. It is likely that by June 21-24 many of the lakes of the Lakes Basin area in the northern Sierra Nevada will be thawed, but that area is more suitable for short hikes given that it is not very large and it is difficult to string together a 4-day trip that covers very much ground. The same statement may apply to the Grouse Ridge area N of I80. Its lakes are presently frozen but by June 21-24 it is probably that many of them will be thawed out. The advantages of the Lakes Basin and Grouse Ridge areas are that they do not require wilderness permits, so one can decide on short notice to head there is the areas are thawed. One can monitor the thaw situation in almost real time using the Sentinel Hub Playground which posts satellite imagery several times a week. So, if you can't get a wilderness permit for wilderness choices (ie in either the wilderness areas or national parks) you can have destinations such as Lakes Basin, Grouse Ridge, NW Desolation W (can base camp at Buck Island, Spider Lakes, or Lake Winifred that is a bit more peaceful than Buck Island and Spider that are reached by the Rubicon Jeep Trail) just outside of Desolation Wilderness, then dayhike from there into Desolation Wilderness.

[TxAggie]

Thank you for the input, I’ll take a look at those areas as well.

In addition to the alternatives noted by others on this thread, NW Desolation Wilderness and vicinity out of Loon Lake is already thawed and by June 21-24 there will be room to roam further than Buck Island-Rockbound-Rubicon Reservoir. On the west flank your destination of last year (is Laurel-Vernon etc.) is already thawed albeit with some snow in the way at the Beehive and by June 21-24 all that will be gone and there will be room to get further, but you probably don't want to go back to the same place. Kibbie Lake will be thawed by June 21-24 and by then the way should be clear to hike further NE up Kibbie Ridge to the beautiful, but fishless, lakes such as Boundary Lake, Spotted Fawn L, etc. and to get a look at Cherry Creek in southern Emigrant Wilderness which should be absolutely savage with high runoff. It is likely that by June 21-24 many of the lakes of the Lakes Basin area in the northern Sierra Nevada will be thawed, but that area is more suitable for short hikes given that it is not very large and it is difficult to string together a 4-day trip that covers very much ground. The same statement may apply to the Grouse Ridge area N of I80. Its lakes are presently frozen but by June 21-24 it is probably that many of them will be thawed out. The advantages of the Lakes Basin and Grouse Ridge areas are that they do not require wilderness permits, so one can decide on short notice to head there is the areas are thawed. One can monitor the thaw situation in almost real time using the Sentinel Hub Playground which posts satellite imagery several times a week. So, if you can't get a wilderness permit for wilderness choices (ie in either the wilderness areas or national parks) you can have destinations such as Lakes Basin, Grouse Ridge, NW Desolation W (can base camp at Buck Island, Spider Lakes, or Lake Winifred that is a bit more peaceful than Buck Island and Spider that are reached by the Rubicon Jeep Trail) just outside of Desolation Wilderness, then dayhike from there into Desolation Wilderness.