C2C Early June

[Corrina]

Hi! I am looking for advice about doing the C2C in early June. My group and I aim to do the entire walk to the summit. We have read all of the cautionary tales, so my group and I understand what we are getting into with regard to water, elevation, etc. What I am wondering about now is the timing with regard to high temperatures at the lower elevations and potential remaining ice and snow at the higher elevations. From what I can tell, it's already been a low-ish snow year, so we may not have issues up high by June (and we can always stop at the tram if we aren't confident of our ability to navigate any conditions at the higher altitudes), but I wonder if the heat at the low elevations will be too high by then. We are all experienced hikers and plan to start at 3am. I know that none of us can predict the weather, but there are so many of you on this forum who have been doing the Skyline Trail and C2C for years, so I wonder what you're experiences have been on the trail that time of year. Thank you! Corrina

[Corrina]

I found some older posts and am seeing that it's not advisable to do this hike after mid-May. Is that the general consensus? When I was doing initial reading, it seemed like Memorial Day was the cut-ft, so I was thinking we could push it into early June. But the more I read, it's looking like we should go in late April or early May. Would love any input from hikers who have done this hike often in the spring. Thanks!

[zippetydude]

Hi Corinna! Let me first acknowledge your great job of researching the whole trip in advance. Great planning leads to great adventures. : ) With regard to your question, you are right on target, placing your concern in exactly the right area. The average high for Palm Springs for March, April, May, and June comes to 80, 88, 95, and 104 respectively. This means that your trip goes from one where you can turn around at will in March, to one where you can turn around and plan on being a bit hot but safe in April, to one where you may be hot but okay in May if the temps don't go crazy (which they often do), to a trip where they can be absolute madness in June. Now, if you don't need to turn around, you'll probably be fine, as it gets cooler as you go up the mountain. But, in general the rule of thumb is to make your first ascent in the safest possible conditions. Once you're a regular, or at least a veteran, you have a very clear idea what you're getting into, so you may be fine in a broader range of temps. For first timers, put all the odds in your favor so that you have a wonderful, if challenging, experience. Two years ago, it was 124 degrees during the third week of June. Trying to hike back down in those hellish conditions would not have been fun, and might well have been hazardous or fatal.

Now, I'm not the most cautious person on this board (Hi Cynthia!) so don't think I'm giving you only the bad side. In truth, April will probably be more enjoyable than May, and May more enjoyable than June. So, if your planning allows for that, I'd say just go in April, and you have the odds stacked in your favor. Or, if everyone in your group is already in great shape, maybe go this coming weekend! The trail is perfect, the weather is sooooo nice that you could hike back down if you ran into trouble and have no worries about getting overheated. And the forecast is completely clear for the next few days. Just a thought. No matter what, I hope you have a grand adventure!

z

[Norris]

I would just add that it can get hot even in what is supposed to be winter. I always check forecast.weather.gov for Palm Springs and it is currently forecasting a high of 86 for Saturday, Feb 14 which is higher than I like to see it before doing this hike. If you get a 3:00 am start and hike pretty fast you can beat the heat but as Zip says you better not need to turn around. Not sure if you are local or out-of-town, but if you aren't coming from too far away it is best to just be flexible as to date and check the forecast.weather.gov site for promising conditions. If you zoom in on the little topo map on the web page for the forecast.weather.gov site you can click on the map at any given elevation and get a point forecast for that elevation/location. That gives you an idea what the temps and wind will be at various points from desert elevation to Long Valley to summit. Currently there is no a packed trail which is largely dry to the summit and micro-spikes are not really necessary but good to carry just in case.

[cynthia23]

I concur with previous posters and their excellent advice. June is definitely too late for a first ascent and so is May. We had a young guy die of heat-related causes one May. Always check the weather beforehand because as mentioned, it can be dangerously hot sometimes even in supposed "winter' months. This February has been alarmingly warm, with temps running 12 to 14 degrees above our historical norm. At 86 degrees, it is already uncomfortably warm to hike Skyline. A few degrees more and it becomes too hot to safely turn around. Normally, the 'safe' period to do C2C is up until mid-April, but with this unusually warm weather, I would really suggest going no later than March (with the proviso that you keep checking to make sure no recent heavy snow has been deposited--we could still get some storms.)

[Corrina]

Thank you, everyone! This is super helpful. Happy Trails! Corrina