[pct-l] March Snow Courses still open

Sat Feb 21 00:48:36 CST 2009

Hi, Don, 

I teach 3-day, Snow Courses in the Lake Tahoe area, Desolation Wilderness.

Of the 4 offered this season, three have a couple of spaces. If you're interested, I'll email you the Course Description and you can decide if you want to join. 

Mtnned
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: whcrs4543 at aol.com 
  To: ned at pacificcrestcustombuilders.com 
  Sent: Friday, February 20, 2009 10:30 PM
  Subject: Re: [pct-l] Hiking WA in July?

  Where are these free snow courses in March ?

  -----Original Message-----
  From: ned at pacificcrestcustombuilders.com
  To: mdonnay at yahoo.com
  Cc: PCT MailingList <pct-l at backcountry.net>
  Sent: Fri, 20 Feb 2009 10:22 pm
  Subject: Re: [pct-l] Hiking WA in July?

When I arrived in Crater Lake on my thru of the pct in 1974 it was still 
full of snow. The winter of '73-'74 was a heavy one with 28 feet dumped in 
Tahoe. I had a snow-covered trail from KM all the way to mid-Washington, 
mid-August. I got really good at following a buried trail and going under, 
over, or around blow-down!

If you are concerned about this kind of route-finding, please join us on one 
of our Snow Courses this March where, among other skills, we teach practical 
route-finding. It's free.

Mtnned
----- Original Message ----- 
From: <mdonnay at yahoo.com>
To: <pct-l at backcountry.net>
Sent: Friday, February 20, 2009 9:15 PM
Subject: [pct-l] Hiking WA in July?

I have dreamed of thru-hiking the PCT for many many years, but being a 
teacher with summers off from work, my wife and I figured we could section 
hike the whole trail in three large summer sections rather than quiting our 
jobs. Since our summer vacations are from early June through the end of 
July, we really don't have the flexibility to pick and choose when to hike 
each section of the trail in its most ideal time period.
In 2005, we hiked the 700 miles in the scorching deserts of SoCal from Campo 
to Kennedy Meadows. Although absolutely beautiful, it was HOT and we made it 
through with mylar umbrellas, but we hardly saw another soul since we were 
way behind the thru pack. In towns, we never stopped hearing "kinda late 
ain't cha?" Out goal that summer was Mammoth, but due to my wife developing 
a
 bad case of shin splints
 we had to taper our goals after spending 8 days with the Saufley's and 
Anderson's packed in ice.
In 2006, we hiked 1,050 miles from Kennedy Meadows to Ashland. It was a high 
snow year with huge fords to negotiate including Evolution "Lake" but we 
really enjoyed this trail section and the camaraderie of being in the middle 
of the thru-hiker pack. It was an amazing experience!
2007 was spent moving internationally to new teaching jobs. So before the 
move, we finished the second half of a 580-mile traverse of the Pyrenees 
mountain range from the Atlantic to the Mediterranean across the French and 
Spanish border.
Last summer, 2008, we were ready to complete the remaining 930 PCT miles 
from Ashland to Manning. We started June 21 and hiked three days before 
running into pervasive snow pack with hundreds of dead falls that 
obliterated the trail and slowed us down tremendously. We decided to get off 
trail and wait out for more snow to melt
 and returned to Fish Lake Hwy 140 three weeks later. There was still lots 
of snow throughout much of OR requiring constant map n compass work trying 
to decipher where the trail might be. We hiked 430 miles that summer, 
reaching Cascade Locks before the end of July when we got off the trail to 
return to work.
It was during those painfully itchy three weeks of waiting out the snow melt 
that I began to question this strategy of section hiking the whole trail 
solely during the months of June and July. We made it through the desert in 
mid summer, way after the optimal time period. The Sierras and NCal was 
hiked during prime time with the thrus. But now is it possible to hike the 
Cascades in early to mid summer with the snow pack?
For this coming summer of 2009, I am praying that the Snow Gods of the 
Cascades tone it down a little this winter, and I have pushed our hiking 
schedule as
 late as possible in the summer before we have to return to work (8 July - 2 
Aug, with three days off to attend a wedding). We have 500 miles to finish 
and we're expecting lots of snow to navigate over with lots of dead falls. 
So I have planned a more reasonable pace of 22 mpd over 23 days.
What are people's thoughts and experiences of hiking the WA Cascades 
starting in early/mid July and hitting the North Cascades by the end of July 
early Aug? Are we going to be wallowing in snow again trying to find the 
trail?
Section hiking the trail while holding a full time job has been a great 
compromise of enjoying both, but in no way does it compare to a thru-hike. 
I'll be thru-hiking the PCT in the next 2 years, that is for sure!!
And I am so excited for this year's thrus getting ready for their hike. Good 
luck and happy and safe trails.
Mike

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