san gorgonio trail conditions

I kept my crampons on for the entire descent, taking advantage of excellent cross-country glissading conditions, and made it from San Jacinto Peak back to Humber Park in just over two hours. They are now invaluable on heavily traveled, compacted, icy tracks (before they clear of snow in the coming weeks) such as Devils Slide, Ernie Maxwell, and Deer Springs trails, at least, especially mornings when conditions tend to be most icy, and for descending. There are layers of hard ice and firm icy snow beneath the fresh powder, and crampons are ideal at present everywhere above 9000 ft, lower in places. New treefall hazards on several major trails have been reported, and those on Spitler Peak Trail have already been cleared by the Trail Report. SGWA lists the elevation gain from momyer creek trailhead to SG summit as 6,062'. At the Peak on Wednesday 18th January 2023 at 1115 the air temperature was 16.8F (-8C), with a windchill temperature of -3.6F (-20C), 27% relative humidity, and a frigid NNW wind sustained at 10 mph gusting to 25.8 mph. Dark Canyon Road (4S02, the access to Seven Pines Trail) and Santa Rosa Truck Trail (7S02) closed to vehicle traffic for the season on 7th November 2022. The summit of San Gorgonio (11,499') is 3 miles beyond High Creek. Zelle, Venmo, and PayPal are all now options. Rain has continued solidly today in Idyllwild, with another 0.90 inch since 0700 this morning. Trails remain very icy due to daily freeze/thaw cycles and compaction from hiker traffic, so spikes are recommended throughout the trail system above about 8000 ft (lower in places). This rain produces huge masses of ice in the trees, including chunks as large as a small microwave weighing 40-80 lb, which then dislodge as soon as direct sunlight warms the trees. At the Peak on Friday 6th January 2023 at 0930 the air temperature was 25.7F (-4C), with a windchill temperature of 14.7F (-10C), 44% relative humidity, and a chilly NNW breeze sustained at 5 mph gusting to 10.6 mph. Camping Shade Solitude Views / Vista. Note however that snow depth itself is rarely indicative of the difficulty (or otherwise) of hiking a particular trail. All have been reported to US Forest Service. Note that average depth is given; due to strong winds accompanying storms there is extensive drifting, often accumulating in the trails. Some hikers will find spikes are useful at least for descending. Although our perceptions may have been skewed by some extremely dry winters in the past decade, major snowfalls are not as rare as many current residents might think. San Jacinto Peak (10810 ft): 4-5 inches (was 12 inches on 9th), Little Round Valley (9800 ft): 4 inches on 24th (was approx. There is a very well-traveled track from Saddle Junction to Tahquitz Peak (multiple photos below). The highest probability of precipitation is early morning on Friday 2nd. If you want a permit for Vivian for a dayhike on the weekend in the summertime, you must get it 3-4 weeks in advance. Do not park in the picnic area sites -- please take care to read all signage! Winds decreasing (severe gales from the W on Mon morning, fresh winds from the WNW by Wed night). Note that average depth is given; due to strong winds accompanying the storm there is extensive drifting, often particularly accumulating in the trails. As described above, crampons (always in conjunction with an ice axe) are currently recommended on certain moderate and higher angle slopes, at a minimum on the Peak Trail above Wellman Divide, and uppermost South Ridge Trail, especially on the north face of Tahquitz Peak. It stopped snowing at about 0800. Forecasts for snowfall have varied greatly in both timing and volume, the latter ranging from inches to feet. The East Ridge Trail from near Miller Peak to San Jacinto Peak has multiple tracks, all of which were disappearing under fresh spindrift when I ascended that way on Monday 23rd. Prior to this storm, conditions had been extremely unsettled for about ten days, with four storms in a week, although only one of those was a significant snow-producing system. Hiking Trails. By late afternoon, with the sun sinking, the search was suspended for another long, cold night. South Fork Trail is a popular 5.94-mile hike in the San Gorgonio Wilderness that gains around 4,600 feet of elevation. Long Valley added about 4-6 inches of snow overnight, and a little less than that during the day today. Two new trees were down on the upper trail, unsurprising given the huge weight of ice from freezing rain plastered all over the trees. On Fuller Ridge Trail there are five major treefall hazards obstructing the trail in the 1.5 mile section nearest to the campground (PCT Miles 189-190.5). On the morning of Wednesday 11th January, getting an Alpine start, I broke trail the entire way from Humber Park to San Jacinto Peak via Devils Slide, PCT, Wellman, Peak, and East Ridge trails. San Gorgonio, located in the San Gorgonio Wilderness Area. Snow on this east slope is drifted, and remains up to 12 inches deep in places. Very shallow snow is often icy and potentially perilous, while deeper powder can actually be much safer, albeit slow-going for most hikers. Deer Springs Trail [updated 22nd December] has an accurate track to follow all the way to San Jacinto Peak as I broke trail the entire way down to the Suicide Rock Trail junction on 15th December. Willow Creek Trail remains a relatively slow, messy hike for a couple of miles. See their announcement here. Note that tracks are being obscured very quickly by drifting of snow from strong winds, sometimes in hours or even minutes (see photo below). Seven Pines Trail has one set of hiker tracks through the snow since the storm in early November 2022. There is a well-traveled track on the lowest section of Deer Springs Trail continuing out to Suicide Rock. Get involved with local programs, from participating in the Cookie Sale and attending Girl Scout camp to registering for in-person and virtual programming on digital storytelling, aviation, and more! They are not however required, depending upon your comfort level hiking on shallow variable snow, potentially mixed with slushy and icy patches. Vivian Creek Trail to San Gorgonio Peak. 0:04. At San Jacinto Peak (10,810ft/3295m) on Tuesday 6th December 2022 at 1530 the air temperature was 19.9F (-7C), with a windchill temperature of 3.8F (-16C), 18% relative humidity, and a sharp due West wind sustained at 7 mph gusting to 13.2 mph. I snowshoed down from San Jacinto Peak via Wellman Divide, Saddle Junction, and Devils Slide Trail. * -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Times staff writer Dave McKibben contributed to this report. Long Valley (8600 ft) has added about two inches, where it continues to snow gently this morning. PCT Mile 181.8 (9070 ft): 4-5 inches (5.5 inches on 12th December), Marion Mountain Trail at junction with PCT (8700 ft): 4-6 inches (6 inches on 12th December), Long Valley (8600 ft): 3-4 inches (5-6 inches on 12th December), Strawberry Junction (8100 ft): 3 inches (4 inches on 12th December), Saddle Junction/approx. Jeff H. Keymaster. However the remaining snow patches are icy in the morning. Envie de partir en randonne autour de Sand To Snow National Monument pour explorer ce superbe coin de San Bernardino County ? The second system may be more substantial, with precipitation expected most of the day and night of Saturday 31st December into Sunday 1st January. For the foreseeable future hikers should be prepared for temperatures below freezing in the high country, and well below freezing when considering wind chill effects (see below for my recent weather observations from San Jacinto Peak). I recorded a short(ish) video report from San Jacinto Peak late morning on Monday 30th (available here on YouTube) that gives a feel for the conditions in the high country at that time. Note that average depth is given; due to strong winds accompanying the storm there is extensive drifting, often particularly accumulating in the trails. The hike back down through Dollar Saddle also had some portions of snow - most notably just before Dry Lake View and directly after Dollar Saddle. Largely a day for digging out again, and getting prepared for the next major snowfall, due tonight. Although not essential in the moderate depth powder, spikes are strongly recommended and many hikers will find them useful especially for descending. Strong winds expected on 11th-12th February, and again on 14th, will likely obscure many tracks with spindrift. The story so far.. A minor storm on the night of Tuesday 21st (sixteenth storm of the winter) produced little snow just an inch in Idyllwild but severe cold and severe winds, erasing all tracks with wild drifting. Your contribution keeps the Report available to all, free from advertising or paywalls, and independent from agencies. There is an average of 9-10 inches of fresh powder so far today at San Jacinto Peak, and about 5 inches in Long Valley. The East Ridge Trail (from near Miller Peak to San Jacinto Peak) has a handful of tracks through the continuous snow, though none (including mine) accurately follow the trail route. Temperatures will be below freezing (max 28F on Mon night, min 25F on Wed morning). There was no evidence of hiker tracks on Fuller Ridge Trail or Seven Pines Trail as of Monday 23rd January. The San Gorgonio Campground provides access to a variety of recreational opportunities, as well as a beautiful location in which to enjoy nature. Melting and freeze/thaw cycles will combine to change trail conditions and potentially the preferred equipment for the terrain for the remainder of February. Snow depths measured at various locations on the trail system are given at the foot of this posting. Steady melting is expected with warming temperatures this week, especially at mid elevations and on sun-exposed slopes. The USFS gate at Humber Park remains closed. Many thanks to Florian Boyd for bringing this to my attention. On 19th the cold icy early morning snow had good bite for grippy boots and I barebooted all the way to San Jacinto Peak. Altitudes are approximate. Devils Slide Trail has a well traveled and compacted track to Saddle Junction in place already. San Gorgonio Mountain (5.8km) Lake Peak (6.7km) Jepson Peak (7.3km) Charlton Peak (7.3km) . Deer Springs Trail has a broken track to follow all the way to San Jacinto Peak. If there are Road Closed signs further down at the junction with Forest Drive sometimes the case at weekends and holidays when snow is present then those nine spaces are also unavailable for legal parking. Crunchy layers as high as 9800 ft elevation told me it had rained that high at the start of the storm yesterday, but conversely there was very light snow (<1 inch) down to 5500 ft in Idyllwild. A short video summary of what we found is available here. Although some treefall hazards from Red Tahquitz to Antsell Rock (PCT Miles 172.5-175) were cleared in June 2021 prior to the rockslide removal work, the situation has badly deteriorated since. The Wellman Trail from Annies Junction to Wellman Divide has about 40% icy snow cover. For those that are unclear, the Skyline Trail is the first segment of the C2C (cactus to clouds) from Palm Springs up to Grubbs Notch, the access point to Long Valley. The powder was lovely and soft, and overlying a firm icy layer (from all the freezing rain). The trail is clearest above immediately above LRV and again close to the Peak junction. Deer Springs Trail is clear from the Highway 243 trailhead to the Suicide Rock trail junction at 7000 ft, and functionally clear from there to Strawberry Junction (8100 ft), with a few icy snow patches increasing in length and frequency as you ascend. Ironically the closure is due to unprecedented snow fall, although such snow fall was average prior to this century, and would have even been below average in the 1970s. This is the flattest portion of the PCT in the San Jacinto mountains, and snow depth currently averages about 13 inches. UPDATE Friday 20th January: Overnight Idyllwild had a very light dusting (<0.25 inch) of snow, but the high country was above the cloud so existing tracks should be unaffected. Snow from the moderate storm on 8th-9th November (summarized in a prior Report) has been melting steadily as temperatures in the past week have been above seasonal. Altitudes are approximate. Note that snow depth itself is rarely indicative of the difficulty (or otherwise) of hiking a particular trail. Spikes are not generally required for ascending, but most hikers will find them useful for descending. Aspen Grove 12.75 miles, 4,092' gain San Jacinto Peak (10810 ft): 25-27 inches (includes 2.5 inches snow added on 10th January) but very heavily drifted, Little Round Valley (9800 ft): 24 inches (2 inches on 10th January), Wellman Divide (9700 ft): 16 inches (1.5 inches snow plus unknown quantity of rain on 10th), Annies Junction/PCT Mile 180.8 (9070 ft): 16 inches (1.5 inches snow plus unknown quantity of rain on 10th), Seven Pines Trail junction with Deer Springs Trail/PCT Mile 184.9 (8700 ft): 13 inches (1 inch snow on 10th), Long Valley (8600 ft): 8 inches (1 inch snow plus 1.5 inches rain on 10th), Strawberry Junction/PCT Mile 183.3 (8100 ft): 6 inches (1 inch snow plus unknown quantity of rain on 10th), Saddle Junction/PCT Mile 179 (8070 ft): 8 inches (1 inch snow plus unknown quantity of rain on 10th), Deer Springs Trail at Suicide Rock Trail junction (6950 ft): 0-1 inch (0.5 inch snow plus >1.0 inch rain on 10th), Devils Slide trailhead at Humber Park (6550 ft): 0.5 inch (0.5 inch snow plus >1.0 inch rain on 10th).

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