High Sierra End of Summer Backpacking Seasonal Assessment

HIGH SIERRA SEASONAL ASSESSMENT
2016-2017

Evolution from Winter to Spring to Summer Conditions

Hey Hikers.

We've just gone through an incredible transition from Winter to Spring to Summer conditions. A season for the ages, for a number of reasons. The most important and dramatic change being the rapid shift from drought to flood conditions over the span of the last three seasons. This type of rapid transition offers a lot of future information for backpackers, laying down in three seasons a huge amount of experience that would normally take decades of trail time to observe and absorb. It typically takes decades to observe both extremes of record-breaking highs and lows in snow levels.

We just watched record low snow and record high snow conditions occur over the span of three seasons. It's been a rapid and dramatic transition.

This Year
A Most Dangerous Year

This year we've just experienced a powerful, record-breaking heavy snow transition from Winter to Spring to Summer. Wow. This year's record snowpack brought dangerous travel and fording conditions across the majority of this season's "expected" PCT launch-dates, across the expected starting dates of all early season JMT hikers, and maintained heavy snow and runoff conditions through and far beyond the typically expected starting dates for typical Summertime backpacking in the High Sierra.

Many folks who did not research trail and fording conditions before starting found themselves facing very dangerous conditions they were unprepared to deal with.

This year was a classic example of early season heavy snow and dangerous fording, with a very long, slow, and dangerous transition into Summer conditions. A lot of folks got killed this year, and many more got into trouble that either required rescue, or that they were able to self-rescue.

This year's seasonal transition was a classic example of the types of dangerous conditions that can be expected in Springtime during heavy snow years, and how much heavy snow years can change the "timing," of our "trail-opening" dates, the dates when the high trails finally open up and then clear of snow, and the character of the conditions we will experience on exactly the same dates during these very different high and low snow years.
This year will be the year to consult (along with 2010-2011, as a "medium-heavy" year), when you want an idea about trail opening timing, snow, and runoff conditions during heavy snow years. This year has given us an example of very heavy snow conditions we can consult for future reference.

LATE AUGUST 2017
We've finally moved into "season typical" High Sierra conditions. This year's snowpack was heavily diminished in most of the North Sierra last month, and now can be said to have retreated into sheltered aspects and positions in the South Sierra too. Yet we should still expect that we will encounter snow while crossing segments of trail across Northeastern-facing aspects. I figure that some of this snow will likely become the base for next season's snows.

Classics
Heavy Snow
2016-2017

This year's Winter to Summer transition was through a record-breaking "heavy snow" Winter to Spring that will offer classic examples of this type of extra-heavy snow year's seasonal transition for future backpackers.

2016-2017
Heavy Snow Year

2016 Winter Calendar
tahoetowhitney.com/2016-high-sierra--backpackers-calendar.html#12

2017 Winter to Spring Calendar
tahoetowhitney.com/2017-high-sierra--backpackers-calendar.html#1

2014-2015
No Snow Year

No Snow
On the other extreme, the Winter to Spring transition of the 2014 to 2015 season shows us the character of a seasonal transition from Winter through Spring to Summer during a record-breaking dry year, contrasted against this year's record-breaking 2016-2017 wet year. Comparing these two seasons shows us the "bookends" of High Sierra seasonal conditions, from almost snow-free conditions during 2014-15, to the record-level snows we saw this year, with an "average" year (2015-16) between these two extremes wedged-in between for good measure.

2014 Winter Calendar
tahoetowhitney.com/2014-high-sierra--backpackers-calendar.html#12

2015 Winter to Spring Calendar
tahoetowhitney.com/2015-high-sierra--backpackers-calendar.html#3

A Lifetime in Three Seasons
We can learn a lifetime's lessons in three seasons!

These last three years have given us examples of the timing and conditions backpackers can expect during heavy, average, and almost-no snow seasons. We can use this information for future reference by consulting those year's High Sierra Backpacking Calendars, once we identify the trajectory of the current season as "Dry," "Normal," or "Wet" we can consult the calendar for the year that reflects those conditions to get an idea of how conditions are timed, evolve, and open up into Summertime Trails.

TAHOE TO WHITNEY NEWS
TRAILS, MAN, NATURE, & SCIENCE

Tahoe to Whitney is now tracking High Sierra Trail News.

Here's the latest High Sierra Trail News for August, 2017

tahoetowhitney.org/content/high-sierra-news-august-2017#latest-t

Many factors affect what we experience on the trail.

We try to track them all.



The Latest News of Man, Nature, and Science

All News
tahoetowhitney.org/content/high-sierra-news-august-2017#latest-g

We break down the various aspects of the news

Backpacker Alerts
tahoetowhitney.org/content/backpacker-alert-april-1-2017

Mountain Safety
tahoetowhitney.org/safety-in-the-high-sierra#news

Health & Fitness
tahoetowhitney.org/content/backpacker-health-fitness-index

Mosquitoes
tahoetowhitney.org/content/mosquito-tick-news-information-high-sierra-backpacking#latest

Trees
tahoetowhitney.org/content/high-sierra-tree-news

Birds
tahoetowhitney.org/content/handy-high-sierra-bird-identification-guide#latest

Bees
tahoetowhitney.org/content/bee-news

Fish-Water
tahoetowhitney.org/content/high-sierra-fish-news

Crashing Environment
tahoetowhitney.org/content/climate-change-news-august-2017

Geology
tahoetowhitney.org/content/high-sierra-geological-information-for-backpackers

Astro-Phys
tahoetowhitney.org/content/physics-research

High Sierra History
tahoetowhitney.org/content/welcome-high-sierra-history#latest


I hope y'all are well.
Let me know what you see on the trail, in the sky, or across any topic affecting our trails through the Sierra!

Happy Trails,

Alex
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Alex Wierbinski

TahoetoWhitney.com: High Sierra Trail Guide

TahoetoWhitney.org: Backpacker’s Forum

TahoetoWhitney: YouTube Channel