San Jacinto North Face Ascent?

[mjordon]

Hi,

Does anyone have any experience in attempting the North Face of San Jacinto in May conditions? My first thought is that it would be a bad idea, but I'm open to all advice.

Thanks!

[FIGHT ON]

Hi,

Does anyone have any experience in attempting the North Face of San Jacinto in May conditions? My first thought is that it would be a bad idea, but I'm open to all advice.

Thanks!

Hi mjordon, My advice is to contact [name removed] at the Desert Water Agency [email removed] before you go!

[Admin note: Fight On is banned for a month. This message board is not for starting drama.]

[KathyW]

If you contact the Desert Water Agency, they probably won't give you permission to cross their property. They have been warning people to stay off their property and contacting people who have parked vehicles near there to let them know they are aware that trespassing has been going on.

Hopefully, someone who has done the route will contact you privately to let you know what they think of conditions on the route.

Here's some more info:

http://www.summitpost.org/route/155928/snow-creek.html

Here's a long drawn out thread on summitpost (with plenty of dead horse beating as you can expect when Fighton is involved) regarding access:

http://www.summitpost.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=44314&start=90

[ajwoodzy]

Hi,

Does anyone have any experience in attempting the North Face of San Jacinto in May conditions? My first thought is that it would be a bad idea, but I'm open to all advice.

Thanks!

Hi mjordon, My advice is to contact [removed by admin] at the Desert Water Agency [removed by admin] before you go!

Thats a bad idea. That will get you no where, they are going to say "no" no matter how much you plead. But as far as conditions go, I have seen pictures from late spring attempts and there are big snow caves that form from Snow Creek. They seem pretty cool. Be safe and be aware of the the "issue" with "trespassing"

[Perry]

It's a bit late in the season to do it. Somebody on that Summitpost thread briefly mentioned a May climb on Snow Creek where they realized they were walking on a very thin section of snow with running water underneath them. Maybe you can avoid that by staying near the right side, but I don't know. It's definitely less popular now than it was a month ago. If it were me, I would be prepared to turn around if uncomfortable. Wouldn't hurt to use snow pickets, rope, and a harness in case of falling through.

[mjordon]

Thanks everyone for the feedback regarding this topic. I truly appreciate the helpful information I received before making a series of potential mistakes.

I think that the 2009-2010 season will provide a much better opportunity (and a safer one).

-M

[ajwoodzy]

A friend of mine just did it a few days ago...lots of little snow tunnels and some more exposed rock in narrow sections.....You have to bypass another area besides the chokestone with some Class 3-4 moves....the route is going downhill fast....Its still doable, but nothing like it is March and early April.

[Perry]

You mention 2009/2010 as a season. Usually early winter and even mid-winter is not ideal because the powder snow is unstable. Very little sunlight hits those chutes on the north face that time of year. You'll notice the snow tongue comes down to 5,500 feet and there's actually quite a lot of snow sometimes at that elevation, 99% of that snowpack is from avalanches pouring down those chutes in winter. mid-March through mid-April is usually the least dangerous time window, but depends on recent melting and re-freezing, varying from year-to-year.