Spikes/Ice Axe on Sierra High Route or Southern Sierra High Route?

[ohm44]

I'm planning on combining the Sierra High Route with the Southern Sierra High Route, going North to South, starting mid August. Would it be helpful to have an ice axe or microspikes for any of the north facing passes or slopes? I'm comfortable using them and don't mind the weight, but don't want to bother if it will be as dry as an August JMT hike. Any info would be greatly appreciated!

[ohm44]

For instance, Roper says to avoid the shores of Iceberg Lake in the morning, is this only early season, or will and axe and spikes give you peace of mind no matter how deep into the summer you are there?

[dougieb]

I believe this is one of the lowest snow years on record and your routes don't exactly cross any glaciers or permanent snowfields that I'm aware of. Also we are talking mid August when things are usually melted out anyway. I'd leave all of that "just in case" gear at home. Then again I've never done these routes, just generally familiar with their locations.

[Flamingo]

I've been on a couple SHR sections already this season, and wholeheartedly agree with @dougieb's observation that it's a very low-snow year. I haven't needed an ice axe or spikes on high route stuff since early June this year. I would vote to leave the ice axe and microspikes at home, especially if you'll be hiking in August. However, if you want some data to make your decision, look at Sentinel Hub Playground for satellite imagery of snow conditions: https://apps.sentinel-hub.com/sentinel-playground/

[bobby49]

At the last time that I went to Iceberg and Cecile Lakes, Iceberg had a safe trail through the snow on the east side of the lake. Then the south end of the lake had a more risky route across snow. I went one way to get up to Cecile, and then went the other way coming back to my camp at the north end of Iceberg. For this year, I wouldn't expect to need either microspikes or ice axe by mid-August.

[Harlen]

I'd leave the stuff behind, knowing that if you run into steep snow, you can always wait till later in the day and kick solid steps up it. We've hiked down through the snow from Cecile and on past Iceberg with our young boys, sans difficulty.