markskor
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Mammoth Lakes & Tuolumne Meadows...living the dream
Posts: 651
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Post by markskor on May 19, 2016 16:28:06 GMT -8
A few decades ago...Before Yosemite's Half Dome became today's cluster-flock.
The two of us had come up the cables early - seemingly the only ones atop the Dome that day... so far. While kicking it, checking the views etc, from the east, angry Sierra clouds came out of nowhere - black - thunder echoing in the distance too. Concerned, we packed up quick in order to get off that big ol' lightning rod ASAP. Amazingly, just as we started moving, from out the west and below, the Yosemite helicopter popped over the ridge, setting down right there in front of us. They told us that that they were evacuating us - lightning danger, etc - and we both squeezed in for a 15 minute roller coaster ride down to the Ahwahnee Meadow... (or whatever they call it now.)
Even though a ride not to be missed, we soon realized that all of our gear was now 4.5 miles above, still set-up, in LYV. FYI, We laughed all the way back - in the driving rain.
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rebeccad
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Writing like a maniac
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Post by rebeccad on May 19, 2016 16:28:49 GMT -8
And I forgot--there was that one trip where the skies were unrelentingly blue the whole time, with not a single cloud to add interest to the photos. That was pretty bad weather too
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Hungry Jack
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Living and dying in 3/4 time...
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Post by Hungry Jack on May 19, 2016 18:35:51 GMT -8
Early October trip to Pictured Rocks blessed us with snow squalls, graupel, and high winds for much of the day. We got a bit of a break and were pitching camp around 4 at Benchmark when a new set of squalls appeared from the northwest. We quickly stowed ourselves in the tent and spent the next 16 hours listening to squalls roar down the lake like a train, then hammer the tent with ice and snow. At one point late in the night, I thought I heard children's voices.
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cajun
Trail Wise!
GEAUX TIGERS!!
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Post by cajun on May 19, 2016 18:57:05 GMT -8
Thunder / lightning storm with torrential rains and trees falling all around.
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Deleted
Deleted Member
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Post by Deleted on May 19, 2016 19:26:12 GMT -8
There are 3 at the top of my list.
1) Monsoon in the Weminuche. A trip I call Death and Destruction. Close call for me and fatal for another hiker I met. He died of exposure. They found him the next spring. 2) Flash flood in GC. Rained hard everyday except the last Got me into Over the Edge, Death in Grand Canyon. One of the rangers rec'd a national citation for his efforts at Cottonwood. 3) Blow up fire in the Flattops. If only it rained, it would not be a story. The sounds and flames and smoke made for a harrowing couple of days. In hindsight I could have made it out the first day. But when the flames jumped a ridge I went down rather than up. Spent the next couple of days plotting moves against mother nature. On my day out there were fires on both sides of me. I knew I had to guess right or I literally would have been toast.
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walkswithblackflies
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Resident terrorist-supporting eco-freak bootlicker
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Post by walkswithblackflies on May 20, 2016 3:55:46 GMT -8
Later after quieting down got outside and moved the tent back to where it was sans ground sheet that was blown away Ahhh, yes. As I was approaching camp after coming down the mountain, I remember seeing my ground sheet taking flight, looking like a condor in a rising thermal. Given its altitude and trajectory, I presume it fell on some unsuspecting endangered species somewhere near Colorado Springs. Likely the most LNT event that I've been responsible for. Though, in theory, I did leave no trace at the campground.
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walkswithblackflies
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Resident terrorist-supporting eco-freak bootlicker
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Post by walkswithblackflies on May 20, 2016 3:58:19 GMT -8
Thunder / lightning storm with torrential rains and trees falling all around.
Being in Louisiana, isn't that pretty much every day?
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walkswithblackflies
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Resident terrorist-supporting eco-freak bootlicker
Posts: 6,951
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Post by walkswithblackflies on May 20, 2016 4:05:23 GMT -8
there was that one trip where the skies were unrelentingly blue the whole time At Ice Lakes Basin, I endured a normal CO thunderstorm. And in typical CO fashion, after the storm passed there was a rainbow under sunny skies. Then 20 minutes later, without a cloud visible, it started hailing.
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Post by ashepabst on May 20, 2016 6:14:47 GMT -8
I've seen some sudden summer storms, unexpected snow. but you guys have way better stories.
to echo Travis, I think the worst I've endured is stifling heat/humidity after a brief end-of-July storm at sunset in the Smokies. after awhile I had to go stand in the rain in my skivvies.
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rebeccad
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Writing like a maniac
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Post by rebeccad on May 20, 2016 7:16:20 GMT -8
I think the worst I've endured is stifling heat/humidity after a brief end-of-July storm at sunset in the Smokies. after awhile I had to go stand in the rain in my skivvies. You guys sort of confirm my resolve to stick with the dryer and cooler parts of the country. I agree that the heat/humidity thing would be worse than any cold and storms I've endured.
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Woodsie
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Colorado
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Post by Woodsie on May 20, 2016 14:57:41 GMT -8
One of my more memorable bad weather trips was a really scary thunderstorm in the Eagle Cap Wilderness (OR). Scared the bejeebers out of me! Multiple times we heard the pop of the lightning before there was a flash and boom. We scattered ourselves away from each other and tried to get in low-lying areas. It worked - we survived I've hiked/backpacked in my fair share of rain, hail, sleet, storms, wind, heat. A couple of years ago five of us Colorado Women of the Wild went on an overnight backpack trip and all of us just about froze our butts off. It was early August and we were camped at ~11,000 feet. It rained. It sleeted. Rained some more. That night you could hear each of us opening our emergency blankets - it's a sound that goes on and on and on... Mine worked just fine. I stayed warm after I got it wrapped around me and my sleeping bag. The next morning there was ice on the wildflowers and the sky was a clear blue. The closest I ever came to having a serious problem with hypothermia was in the Obsidian Falls area (OR) many years ago. I was solo. It rained on me the whole hike. I got soaked, even with rain gear (we all know how that goes). By the time I got to a place to camp I was shivering and very cold. It was really difficult setting up my tent because I was so cold and my hands were numb, but when it was finally up I threw everything - pack and all - into the tent. I crawled in and snuggled up in my sleeping bag and stayed there until morning.
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cajun
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GEAUX TIGERS!!
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Post by cajun on May 20, 2016 18:25:48 GMT -8
Being in Louisiana, isn't that pretty much every day? hahahahaha no! That was in the Sipsey Wilderness in Alabama. Our Louisiana trees *generally* stay in place ... they usually fall over when there's a drought followed by flash flooding.
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balzaccom
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Waiting for spring...
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Post by balzaccom on May 20, 2016 19:48:19 GMT -8
We're pretty careful about reading the weather reports before we hike. We occasionally get caught in a thunderstorm or rain shower, but if it looks worse than that, we'll usually bail. Worst weather? Fourth Recess last year in early July when everyone got hammered with thunderstorms and hail. We only got 45 minutes of it. We were lucky.
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christye
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Livin the Life
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Post by christye on May 21, 2016 11:06:30 GMT -8
When we first moved to Alaska Em and I stayed in a tent (for 4 months). Well, we drug our feet getting the cabin done before snow/winter hit. We were having toooo much fun! Mid to late November in the Interior of Alaska we were in the tent with -20s.. the tent collapsed on us due to heavy snowfall one night. We did fine though. Knowledge and gear kept us thriving
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ogg
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Post by ogg on May 21, 2016 16:47:52 GMT -8
I've been pretty lucky with weather. My worst experience was last July on an overnighter to Baker Lake in Great Basin NP, not far from the lake, I found myself in rain gear top and bottom, gaiters, goretex lined boots, and holding an umbrella, under some decent tree cover, getting soaked under a staggering waterfall of hail that eventually turned to cold rain. My torso stayed reasonably dry- my new Marmot Super Mica jacket impressed me then- but I felt as if I had fallen in a lake. I ended up hiking back to the car that day, the few good campsites close to the underwhelming lake were too exposed for my liking, and the few marginal camp spots I could find lower down in better cover were all surrounded by snags. I didn't feel safe with idea of sleeping under them. It had been blustery and breezy much of the day, which only increased after the rain abated. In fact, the whole area was rife with snags and a drainage alongside the trail at one point was a massive boneyard of dead trees. I marveled a bit at the amount of water that would have had rush through there during a storm to scour and collect so many dead trees.
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