High Sierra Trail Reports Index Link: Reports prior to Spring 2011

See a list of High Sierra trail reports from previous seasons.

See the 2011 High Sierra Spring-Summer Conditions Report.

These reports are from backpacking all four seasons in the Sierra, so they may give you an idea of conditions during a particular season.  

But maybe not. During recent decades the seasons have been abnormal, and changing year-to-year.

The general trend for the last twenty years has been for Fall to push deeper into Winter with the length of Winter has shortening not only in terms of longer Falls seasons, but by the strengthening trend of Spring begining earlier and earlier every year. Add to these trends a long-term drought cycle both in the Sierra Nevada and the Southwest of the United States, and we have already seen the establishment of a long-term drying and warming trend that has changed the character of the High Sierra.

The last two years are powerful proof that seasonal changes are incredibly varible.

The last two years has brought record-level Winter and Spring weather to the Sierras which experienced record breaking Spring snows to close last year's 2009-2010 season. Last year's wet Winter and Spring has been complimented by the near record Winter snow pack of 2010-2011, and accentuated by this year's incredibly heavy Spring Snows.

And we are only in March. (Aug Update)

  I invite you to post up your stand-alone trail condition reports and updates here, in the Four Season High Sierra Weather and Trail Conditions Forum. You can post up your observations here. Registered users can post up their pictures and embed videos. Unknown Hikers can post up text.

As I finish the trail guide all hikers will be able to put specific trip reports about their trips into the forum for every section of the trail, as well as being able to post up general conditions updates about snow and fording conditions.  

 For now you can only post up general trail conditions reports, hopefully along with the date, route, and high points of your trip, and an overall report on trail, snow, weather, and fording conditions.

Trip reports are currently only possible for the TYT and PCT between Lake Tahoe and Highway 4, until I complete the guide and forum South from Highway 4 to the Whitney Portal.

Stay tuned as I continue to build the resources on this site.