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The friend is not a hiking newbie, just a backpacking newbie. I've done 10-15 mile day hikes with him in Desolation Wilderness and around the bay area where we live. But yeah, hiking across a snow field with a pack is a different beast, especially when a slip could result in being plummeted into an icy lake! Don't want to make him buy an ice axe in addition to all the other stuff he needs. So, we'll probably just go down to Shadow after just visiting Iceberg. We'll see, I guess!
Great forums you have here
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Maiathebee wrote:
Don't want to make him buy an ice axe in addition to all the other stuff he needs.
An ice axe or crampon in an inexperienced hikers hands can be dangerous and deadly.
Only after proper training and practice should one use these useful pieces of gear
that require one to be highly proficient in their usage.
Professional Sierra Landscape Photographer
I don't give out specific route information, my belief is that it takes away from the whole adventure spirit of a trip, if you need every inch planned out, you'll have to get that from someone else.
Have a safer backcountry experience by using the HST ReConn Form 2.0, named after Larry Conn, a HST member:http://reconn.org
Maiathebee wrote:
Don't want to make him buy an ice axe in addition to all the other stuff he needs.
An ice axe or crampon in an inexperienced hikers hands can be dangerous and deadly.
Only after proper training and practice should one use these useful pieces of gear
that require one to be highly proficient in their usage.
Yes, of course. Let's not add evisceration or crampon cartwheels to the list of Things That Can Go Wrong. Careful preparation and good judgement of the situation and everyone's abilities in relation to that are imperative. This is why I am even on this forum doing research. And as you can see above, my original question wasn't "should I take a newbie on that snowfield" but rather "will the snowfield be there."
Thanks again.
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Welcome to HST!
Would not take a total newbie on that route. It is steep and can be quite
intimidating even for backpackers with experience, especially if one does not
time the crossing at the optimal time of the day, and without an ice axe and
crampons usage/experience.
Here is what it looked like in late July of 2010, which was a moderately wet year. I would guess from my other experiences this year that we are about a month ahead of 2010, so a ballpark would be that the traverse from Iceberg to Cecile will look like this by late June. Perhaps someone who has been up there recently can comment.
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Thanks kpeter! That photo is pretty informative. I think we'll plan to hike up to Iceberg on an afternoon and see what the snowfield is like. If it's there, we'll head back to Ediza to camp and down to Shadow the next day.
Appreciate any updates as we get closer!
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In 2010 they had a trail crew working on the trail from Ediza to Iceberg. It had been something of a well-traveled but unmaintained path. They were doing stonework, diverting water, pruning brush, etc, so an excursion from Ediza up to Iceberg should now be "a piece of cake."
