[pct-l] Calling all Meteorologists, Prophets, and Pychics

[Ned Tibbits]

Mike,

I can speak to 1982/83 because that was Mountain Education's first year 
teaching snow skills to thru hikers! (I completed the trail in 1974 after a 
normal-heavy snow winter).

I remember we had 28 feet of snow on the ground in March when I started 
taking people into the Tahoe backcountry. I didn't get down to SeKi, where 
we teach now, to see how the creeks treated what thru hikers may have been 
there in May, but I can certainly speak to two of our more recent high snow 
years, 2010 and 2011, in this regard!

The creeks after the thaw starts will be roaring, white with froth, deep, 
and swift. No place for a novice! The snowline for May of 2010 was at 10,000 
and for 2011 it was at 9,500, meaning miles of snow hiking. (This is the 
time period if you might be north-bound as a thru hiker). July 4th of 2010 
still had 4 feet of snow on Muir Pass....

My advice, don't put yourself in there without knowing how you're going to 
stay safe!

If you have any further questions, ask away!



Ned Tibbits, Director
Mountain Education, Inc.
www.mountaineducation.org
ned at mountaineducation.org


Mission:
"To minimize wilderness accidents, injury, and illness in order to maximize 
wilderness enjoyment, safety, and personal growth, all through experiential 
education and risk awareness training."
-----Original Message----- 
From: Mike Belanger
Sent: Tuesday, March 01, 2016 4:48 AM
To: PCT-List
Subject: [pct-l] Calling all Meteorologists, Prophets, and Pychics




Does anyone have a clue what the water resources and trail conditions were 
like on the PCT the years of 1982/83 or '97/98 during El Nino, generally for 
Southern and Northern California in March-April, and specifically as it 
relates to late snow storms, flooding and fording, stressed water sources, 
obvious landslides, water logged tree limps etc. Even a brief synopsis on 
these worst-case events would be appreciated.Did anyone complete the trail? 
Well yeah, obv's. But could a noob like me take it on? I'm visualizing 
something like Lt. Dan on Gump's boat during the hurricane, but you know, 
with a backpack and poncho on. And...well, both of my legs....Any specific 
preparations I should include besides the usual rain gear, sunbrella, 
whippet, and crampons?I probably have no idea what I'm talking about here 
but let's hope someone here can help us out.My understanding of El Ninos is 
that they are warm and wet. Meaning the they hammer the west with cold 
precipitation from Alaska in t
he late fall/early winter with a lull somewhere in the middle of winter 
(February/March). Then the Pineapple Express comes through and dumps cold 
rain and wet snow well into May. This is good news for the water-stressed 
states but bad news for us hikers. Someone please help straighten me out! 
And I know we have to wait and see, but worry is just what I do best!

_______________________________________________
Pct-L mailing list
Pct-L at backcountry.net
To unsubscribe, or change options visit:
http://mailman.backcountry.net/mailman/listinfo/pct-l

List Archives:
http://mailman.backcountry.net/pipermail/pct-l/
All content is copyrighted by the respective authors.
Reproduction is prohibited without express permission.