Tram to Peak conditions

[Newmountaineer]

Does anyone know what the conditions for the tram to peak are likely to be this Friday or Saturday? I might try to head up and was wondering if this small storm is expected to bring any of the white stuff. Should I take crampons for any possible icy sections?

[phydeux]

I was up on Saturday/Sunday and the snow was pretty spotty and minimal all the way to the top. You could make it in trail runners, but I'd suggest boots to be on the safe side. The 'deepest' spots were in the shade between Round Valley and Wellman's Divide, but nothing too tough to navigate around.

Also stayed overnight in Little Round Valley. The snow on the west side is a little deeper and covers more of the trail, buts its melting pretty fast. Came back up to the peak before dawn on Sunday (using crampons on the hard snow) for a beautiful sunrise! 26F on the summit just before the sun came over the horizon.

[cynthia23]

Welcome, NewMountaineer. This morning in Palm Springs there appeared to be new hail or light snow on the mountain above 8500. Right now it is actually sprinkling a little in Palm Springs. It's not super-cold though, mid-60'. I would expect there to be some new snow up there. I will try and remember to post again as the week progresses what I can spot from down here ...

[Perry]

It looks like the snow came down to about 3,000 feet. It's about 40F in Desert Hot Springs right now.

[Newmountaineer]

Well the tram cam definitely shows snow but it's obviously hard to tell how much. Speaking of which, I'm in the market for some new boots. I have some low-top hiking boots and plastic mountaineering boots but nothing in between. Any recommendations on a good, reasonably priced pair that will suffice for cool days and that might be crampon compatible just in case?

[ToddF]

Snow from the storm today was visible from below just before sunset. How much up high remains to be seen. If I get up there early tomorrow with my snowshoes I'll post the results. I'm sure hopeful, got exactly ONE snowshoe day up there so far this season!

Best, Todd in CC.

[guest]

Hi Newmountaineer,
Yuo might like the Merrell Thermo 8 waterproff, a good friend used them to the peak a couple weeks ago and said they were great.
There about $120.

Snowshoe for the next few days from what I can see, I'd estimate 8-12 inches, eyeing it from my front yard with binocs.

ss

[cynthia23]

Hi Guesty, I would like to know how you use the binocs to evaluate snow depth? Do you use other nearby objects, etc? What kind of binocs do you use/recommend? Are you able to use your binocs to evaluate conditions/look for ice on the last section of Skyline? If so where in town do you go to get the best view?

thanks, would love to know this stuff ...

[prives]

Hi all, (my fist post! )

I would def. be interested in a report/photos fom anyone who is able to make it past the tram station this weekend, but to answer a few questions, here's the post for today from the Tram's weather page:

Thursday March 29, 2007: THERE ARE FOUR INCHES OF SNOW IN LONG VALLEY! Northerly flow in the upper levels will change to a flatter westerly flow by the weekend. The skies will remain sunny as all the energy continues to bring severe storms to the Midwest over the next few days. Highs will get back up into the 40's with even warmer conditions for the weekend

Enjoy.

[magikwalt]

The in between boot is the toughest for me since if its too light you can't use step in crampons and too stiff its a pain for the trail. I opted to drop the step in crampons and went with a pair of Asolo FSN 95 GTX Hiking Boots. They are comfortable and support well. Also come in widths for us wide body types.