High Sierra Topix

Winter kept an icy grip on Tuolumne Meadows during the first full week of spring. With 17 inches of new snow and temperatures reaching as low as -15°F, it felt like winter to our rangers up in the high country. Brrrrr.
This winter has been one for the record books and California keeps on setting new ones. In a recent snow survey at Dana Meadow, Rob and Laura measured 162.45 inches of snow and 72.75 inches of snow water equivalent (SWE- how much water is in the snowpack). Compare that to 8 years ago at the same place and time, they measured 11.5 inches pf snow and only 4 inches of SWE during the extremely dry winter of 2015. Check out this week’s post to learn more about conditions, wildlife, and a little history about activities at Badger Pass, when an all-day lift ticket was only a dollar! https://www.nps.gov/yose/blogs/update-f ... 8-2023.htm

Penstemon wrote: ↑Tue Apr 18, 2023 4:26 pm Snowshoed up to Panoramic Point from the Grant Grove Kings Canyon visitor center. At 7400 ft the trailhead outhouse was snow covered, with only the top two feet of the roof showing. Hume Lake @5200 ft melted out. the peaks surrounding the Middle Fork and South Fork Kings river are one giant blanket of snow. I tried to upload a photo, but I don't know how.

Also, found out that the road to Middle Fork trailhead (towards Panther Creek) is closed to foot traffic in addition to the usual closure for cars. So no dice trying to get in for a low elevation overnight either. A Sequoia Ranger estimates the road will open in about two weeks, but no assessment of whether they'll be able to safely open the trail at that time also. this weekend really opened my eyes to what will be possible and when.