2024 Backcountry Current Conditions Reports

[sdsdsd]

Did an overnighter thru all lakes. Trail clean and dry till about the Fourth Lake. Decent amount of mud and snow starting from about .5 mile before Sixth lake all the way up to Seventh Lake. The north facing slopes are still well incased in snow, with postholing up to your knees if you try to head towards Sam Mack or the glacier. Fifth Lake still had a little bit of ice(might be gone by this weekend). Gave a look at Cloudripper, the scree shoot out of Seventh Lake is melted but the upper ridge looks to still have some snow. Mosquitoes only out in the evening and early morning.

Amazing views from Summit Lake and the back side of Fourth Lake at the snow-covered Palisades. Pristine conditions for anyone looking to get some early season miles and altitude.

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[paul]

Started Allen Camp trailhead. Patchy snow almost from the start; and everywhere except more open south facing slopes. All lakes I visited (Cole Creek, Long, Black Rock, unnamed lake west of Munson Meadow, Beebe lake) melted out except Beebe which was about half. Trails very faint mostly, lots (and I mean LOTS) of down trees almost everywhere. Following any of the trails besides the jeep trails requires paying close attention at almost all times
Getting over the first ridge before Allen Ranch was either class 3 rock for about 10 feet, or a traverse on steeper snow than you want to do without crampons - although short, so that snow might melt off that last bit soon.

[commonloon]

Headed up Deer Cove Trail from Hwy 180 Saturday morning ~8am. No snow to speak of until after Grizzly Lakes. Trail is hard follow in places, lots of downed trees, branches, etc. from the fire years ago. Some minor bushwhacking. Water was limited - filled at Deer Cove Creek and then near Fry Pan Meadow. Arrived at Harrington Pass at ~12pm. Snow was ok at top. Soft enough that I could kick steps and plunge step in my trail runners, but it seemed fairly stable. The snow was patchy with deep drifts at the on the ridges I walked: towards Mt Harrington and then the Silver Spur. In places I couldn't see over edges -- that infinity pool effect. There were rain/possible thunder storms clouds to the East in the afternoon. I could see rain falling and heard some rumbling in the far off distance. BUT the weather remained nice -- it was hot though from Fry Pan Meadow down. Camped near Fry Pan Meadow (warm night) and headed back to my car Sunday.

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[Elizsgrace]

I really enjoyed the hike from Crabtree to the ridge NW of bear lake. Plenty of solitude above 8500', and there are beautiful lakes up there with no mosquitos. Temperatures are comfortable, with evening lows about 30 degrees to highs about 70 degrees at 8800'. After my trip, I dropped by Bear Lake to see the hype since that's where everyone from Crabtree was headed. Bear Lake is beautiful but has mosquitos and crowds. Bubblegum Lake was beautiful at sunset.

Route taken:
Crabtree > ridge NW of Bear Lake > Bubblegum Lake > ridge line NW of Y Meadows Reservoir > Bubblegum Lake > Crabtree > Bear Lake > Crabtree.

Elevations: 7145' - 9200'

Difficult section encountered: On the north face, trail is 100% covered by snow above 9000 feet with patchy coverage (50-60%) from 8000-9000'. Snow is melting fast: plan 9000'+ travel earlier in the day, if you have lower tolerance for postholing. Be aware of the streams flowing under the snow, which melt the snow above. Limited snow on the south face - castle rock looked completely snow free from my vantage point. Plenty of postholing, downed trees and bushwhacking.

Special equipment needed/used: Microspikes. Used plex solo + hyperlite 40L pack. Didn't need the puffy. Pleasant hiking temperature.

Possible alternative routes: Unless you bring GPS maps and hold them in your hand the entire time, you will likely veer off-trail since the trail is 60-100% obfuscated by snow cover. I don't see the point in trying to stick to the trail when it is covered by snow as it does not usually map the best route from A to B. I used map and compass and did not bring GPS maps. YMMV.

[commonloon]

I did an overnighter from Mono Pass to Mt Izaak Walton and back on June 22 & 23.

Route taken: Mono Pass, Laurel Lakes trail, Unnamed pass south of Bighorn Pass, Bighorn Lake, Mott Lake, JMT/PCT, Walton Col to ridge to summit (c2+), descended West face (c2), return via JMT/PCT and Mono Pass trail.

Elevations: 8,800 ft to 12,000 ft

Difficult section encountered: Bighorn Pass looked to have (from below) a large snow drift/cornice at the top. I believe it was likely possible that I could climb around or over it, but I choose to try the unnamed pass to the south. Call it "Little Bighorn Pass" ? I'm going to post a TR with some details on it when I get more time. Thanks Maverick for the nudge.

Special equipment needed/used: I brought an ice axe and microspikes but never used them. I had intended to ascend Izaak Walton via the East Face or Walton Col (from east) the 1st day but when I arrived I was just too tired and the snow was softening.

Other details: Mosquitos were very active. Temperatures were perfect. Light breeze. Clear skies.

[wildhiker]

Hiked down the Yosemite Creek trail from Tioga Rd to top of Yosemite Falls and returned. Camped one night on an open knoll near the Eagle Peak trail junction.

Trail is is bad shape. Last time I hiked ii in 2016 it was clear and fast. This time there were at least 20 downed trees scattered all along the length of the trail. Especially bad in the burn scar at the junction of the trail from Lukens Lake, where the downed trees were in big tangles that were difficult to bypass or climb through. Some trail sections on the lower half were overgrown with brush that you had to push through - thankfully mostly chinquapin with only a little whitethorn.

The ford of Yosemite Creek about a mile below Tioga Road was knee to occasionally mid-thigh deep (on my short legs) and about 30 feet across. Peak flow according to rangers at the entrance station was in May.

On the good side - saw no other hikers except at the beginning and at the falls. Many wildflowers in bloom on the upper half - dwarf lupine, penstemon, **** paws, and paintbrush.

[Wandering Daisy]

The Mono Pass trail was in good shape. Snow starts AFTER the steep part above the cliffs (this part is "fall-you-die" steep when snow covered). The remaining to the pass had plenty of steps but was quite hard about 9AM. Micro-spikes were helpful but not necessary. They allowed faster travel without having to place each foot exactly. The trail down to Summit Lake still has some snow patches. Summit Lake was open- one group of three actually swam in the lake. The view from the pass showed that there is still plenty of snow on the north-facing slopes above Ruby Lake. Coming back four days later at about noon, the snow was softer but thick enough that I did not post-hole. I again used micro-spikes simply because I had them.

The trail down to Mono Creek is in good shape with a few very small snow patches. I waded across Golden Creek but a couple behind stepped across on a wet log and rock. The trail up to the lowest Pioneer Basin Lake has not had any horse use this year yet was easy to follow. I waded across the outlet of the lower lake and easily found the trail to Lake 10825. I followed a faint trail up to the outlet of Lake 10862. A huge snowbank prevents crossing at the lake, so I dropped down and waded across below. There are many use-trails that continue to the upper lakes. The uppermost lake is still partially frozen; all other lakes are open. There are long narrow steep snowfields plastered against hillsides that you have to divert around. Other than the uppermost lake the grass is greening. I found the horse trail down to the lower lake. It crosses the creek coming from Lake 10862 and crosses twice. The meadows are lush. I was surprised at how well used the trail is. Only when I came back did I realize I failed to see the trail junction on my way to Lake 10825.

I returned to Mono Creek and crossed to go into 4th Recess Lake where I camped. The waterfall is still laced with snow- very impressive! The meadow is a bit wet. I walked the east? (left) shore which had a small trail to the talus about mid-lake.

There were plenty of small fish in the Pioneer Basin Lakes and 4th Recess Lake. I saw very few people in Pioneer Basin or 4th Recess. Two days without seeing anyone. Of course, there were tons of day-hikers going up to Mono Pass.

Two days of afternoon storms. Significant storm on the 25th, lighter storm the 24th. Probably very localized. NWS calls it "monsoonal". I estimated about an inch (or more) in 2 hours. Heavy rain, hail, lightning, strong winds. I heard some rockfall on nearby slopes. So, you need to be prepared and plan to be off passes late afternoons.

[Eric K.]

Route taken: North Lake -- Lamarck Col -- Darwin Lakes -- Muir Pass -- Bishop Pass -- South Lake

Elevations: 8,700 - 12,900

Difficult section encountered: Most difficult was Lamarck Col, although it wasn't technical. Both sides of Muir Pass were snowy, and the trail was very wet. Some river crossings were almost knee high, and so either your boots are sure to be dunked or you go barefoot.

Special equipment needed/used: None. Could be done with boots and poles only, although microspikes would add some additional protection. We carried crampons and ice axes, but they weren't necessary. Poles were extremely useful (and necessary for me) for water crossings and snowfields. Don't forget sunglasses and bug spray.

Possible alternative routes: None for our route. But the bridge across the San Joaquin on the PCT/JMT (between the Darwin Canyon cutoff and Piute Pass trail) remains out. The rangers posted notes on backcountry signs strongly recommending against wading, and we heard news of a hiker being swept away and ultimately airlifted out. The alternative is the "up and over" which apparently involves 1,000' class 3 scramble up and, well, over, to bypass the bridge. We met many northbound thru-hikers avoiding both by hiking out Bishop Pass, and then continuing north via Piute Pass.

[LightBulb]

Route taken: Cross country: Grouse ridge -> Loney Lake outflow -> Granite Creek -> Glacier Lake -> Five lakes basin -> Downey lakes -> Grouse Ridge

Elevations: 6500'-7500'

Snow on northern facing slopes but melting fast. I estimate there will be no snow in two weeks.

Trailhead snowed in on arrival, hiked out from above stanford lake. The snow melted to the point where the grouse ridge trailhead was accessible at some point during the trip, road is very bumpy but should be accessible with 2wd and moderate ground clearance.

All the creeks flowing strong but crossable with some searching.

Full wild flowers and butterfly's most locations.

Very hot 1pm-4pm with a forecast of 75F, I would go higher if weather.gov forecast is much above that. https://forecast.weather.gov/MapClick.p ... 39.3895819

[wulfman]

Route taken: Pine Creek Pass -> Feather Pass -> assorted Bear Lakes -> White Bear Pass -> Lake Italy -> Italy pass [mini high route section]

6/29-7/3

Elevations: 10500'-12500'

New-ish to the off-trail business in the Sierras, so went for a short, reasonably well documented section of the high route. Coming from sea level, the elevation was a bit rough. Happy we brought the microspikes.

Route to Merriam Lake was riddled with mosquitoes, eased off after LaSalle lake and only became annoying on the way down from Italy Pass.

Feather Pass: crossed a soft snowfield along LaSalle, no snow on the south side, descended a snow field on the northern side. Bit soft for comfort midday.

Bear Lakes: absolutely stunning, hardly any mosquitoes. Hit White Bear Lake towards sunset and got thoroughly intimidated by what looked like a very steep snow wall from a distance. Made camp (and had thoughts about having to turn around), until the morning light revealed a completely different perspective.

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Followed faint use marks down the southern side, very glad we didn't go SOBO, otherwise the wall would have been intimidating. Last part of the descent on snow again.

South side of Lake Italy: two snow fields touched the shore. Crossed the first (western) one well above what looked like a glide crack (?), but got intimidated by the 2nd one (see picture). Things were getting soft & slushy, so we decided to head uphill on rock. Might have made a different decision earlier in the day, but found a decent route & transitioned at the same elevation towards Italy pass.

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Lovely trek.