When to enter the Sierras

[Wolf - 23000]

Hi everyone,

I'm working on helping plan for some new hikers thru-hike the PCT. It been a while when I did my thru-hikes but on 2 or my 3 thru-hike, I remember going through the Sierra in the beginning of June with many hikers in front of me. What is the rule of thumb now. I'm being told now that hiker should not plan on hiking through the Sierra before June 15. Anyone know where that date came from?

Wolf

[Malto]

Ray Jardine. Aka Ray Day is June 15th and is supposed to be the ideal time for Sierra entry in a "normal year". But take it with a grain of salt. I started June 14th on a very high snow year. Yes there was almost solid snow for 300 miles but a few of us made it. in contrast hikers the last two years have gone in as early as June 1st and encountered little snow. There is a Sierra Entry estimation on Postholer that takes into account the snow year. I suspect that is as good as any indicator. But much will depend on each hikers tolerance for misery.

[Wolf - 23000]

Thanks Malto! I was wondering were the June 15 date came from. I went through early then June 15th myself and made it through fine. I'm also have some experience hiking in snow too.

Wolf

[SCRUB HIKER]

Even in normal to heavy snow years, people still leave Kennedy Meadows at the beginning of June and get by. In Yogi's guide, there's a guy named Joker who says several times that he went into the Sierra around June 1 every year for three years in a row--'08, '09, '10, none of which were low snow years--and always had fun despite there still being a lot of snow.

The last two years don't count as normal years. Almost no thru-hikers faced any snow, no matter when they entered. I left Kennedy Meadows June 12 of this year (started May 5) and had maybe 300 yards total of snow to cross between there and Sonora Pass, 315 miles later.

If you listen to everything Jardine says, you'll go into the Sierra on June 15 carrying a big synthetic quilt and eating only corn pasta and whole grains.

[Geo.]

Been some years since my thru-hike. I left Kennedy Meadows June 4th. Fair bit of snow already down along the way but not much in the way of actual snowfall in transit. No real problem apart from maybe a bit of 'postholing' at times.

.

[Dogwood]

Check Postholer.com for suggested Sierra Entry dates for NOBO PCTers. It's typically a suggested date for PCTer reaching KM. They used to have historical records of the suggested exact day for different PCT yrs. The last time I looked at the recs by Postholer on the PCT "suggested" NOBO Sierras Entry date at KM(southern KM) it ranged from very late May in the lowest snow level(fastest warming/snow melting yrs) to as late as the fourth wk of June.

[Miner]

The funny thing about Ray day is Ray Jardine never used it himself and went in much earlier on his 2 NOBO hikes. From reading the first edition of his PCT Hikers Handbook, rather than being chosen after analysis and trial and error, it seems the date was arbitrarily chosento try to create an ADZPCTKO type gathering at Kennedy Meadows before the Sierras. Well it worked, only the gathering formed back at Lake Morena near the border instead.

From my experience, the later you enter, the less snow there is so the quicker you go. It amazing how much snow melts in just a week. In 2009, I entered on June 24th and only had any significant snow near the top of the passes and found going through pretty easy (compared to what others talked about 2 weeks earlier). That said, going in too late means you are having to run for the Canadian border and risk not finishing. I finished on Oct.2, but I passed numerous hikers that weren't willing to put the necessary miles in and avoid taking too many zeros that had to skip sections at the end to finish before the snow.


The best date really depends on how much snow fell and the comfort level of the individual hiker. That said, many hikers have gone in early June even with a big snow pack. If you allow your start date to be determined by the dates of the ADZPCTKO, then there is no planning. You get there when you get there. Usually before June 15th.

[Coffee]

I've been considering this issue for my 2015 thru hike knowing that I'd like to avoid crowds at the border by starting a bit earlier than normal (with a possible side trip back to ADZPCTKO). Of course, that would lead to arriving at Kennedy Meadows quite early - probably before June 1. I've thought about possibly taking a week or two off at that point if the snow is still deep. I could fly back home to visit family or take a drive up the CA coast, then come back around June 15.

I have no experience with snow travel but I am planning to take a class on it prior to my hike. I've become more concerned about river crossings and potentially collapsing snow bridges than with the passes.

The only reason I worry about crowds at the start is because 2015 will be the first year after Wild is released and my guess is that it will be the most crowded PCT season ever, at least for the first several hundred miles and I want to avoid that.

[Dogwood]

I'm going to have a sit down with my employer about receiving time and 1/2 on June 15 from now on. I'm tired tired tired of being discriminated for being a hiker.

[magic_game03]

A few people here have mentioned Kennedy Meadows. The best gauge for determining when to pass thru the Sierras is keep yourself informed of when KM starts taking in mail drops. There is no predetermined date, it happens when the road has thinned out and stabilized enough to get the big loads of drop boxes up there by snowmobile. When that happens the flood gate of thru-hikers opens up. Usually between June 1st and 15th.

[Dogwood]

Sierra Entry Dates for NOBO PCTers are only general suggestions.

[RedBeerd]

This year my crew went in June and got out end of September right before snow started coming down.