Storm number 20, and the last of a stunning first two months of 2023, produced another major snowfall with 10 inches overnight in Idyllwild, and it is still snowing heavily. Trail conditions are updated below. On Monday 13th I also postholed the entire hike, as I was able to ascend barebooting to about 9200 ft before putting on crampons. Long Valley added about 4-6 inches of snow overnight, and a little less than that during the day today. San Gorgonio' taken from Hwy 62 in 29 Palms on March 2, 2023. The Wellman Trail track was disappearing under spindrift as I re-broke it on Monday 23rd. Tracks are in place around Skunk Cabbage Meadow, and south from Saddle Junction toward Chinquapin Flat. March 2 - Marion Mountain to San Jacinto and return same route. For driving directions, the trailhead address is: Vivian Creek Trailhead. They are strongly recommended on certain moderate and higher angle slopes, at a minimum on the Peak Trail above Wellman Divide, the Wellman Trail, Deer Springs Trail above Little Round Valley, and uppermost South Ridge Trail, and on both flanks but critically on the north face of Tahquitz Peak. Snow cover remains >95% through Little Round Valley up to San Jacinto Peak. Conditions remain very unsettled for the first week of January. Deer Springs Trail has a broken track to follow all the way to San Jacinto Peak. Ft. 3919 Calle Andalucia, San Clemente, CA 92673. The San Gorgonio Campground provides access to a variety of recreational opportunities, as well as a beautiful location in which to enjoy nature. In Idyllwild (at 5550 ft) it started raining at 1100, where it has been relatively slow to accumulate so far, with 0.4 inch by 1500. Complete list of supporters, I-10/San Gorgonio Pass to I-15/Cajon Pass, Hwy-14/Agua Dulce to Hwy-58/Mojave-Tehachapi, Hwy-58/Mojave-Tehachapi to Hwy-178/Walker Pass, Hwy-138/Mt. This is expected to be a seasonal closure until next year. LockA locked padlock Only five of these require cutting, and I was able to remove three by hand earlier in February. Although some treefall hazards from Red Tahquitz to Antsell Rock (PCT Miles 172.5-175) were cleared in June 2021 prior to the rockslide removal work, the situation has badly deteriorated since. Deer Springs Trail is clear from the Highway 243 trailhead to the Suicide Rock trail junction at 7000 ft, and functionally clear from there to Strawberry Junction (8100 ft), with a few icy snow patches increasing in length and frequency as you ascend. Extremely cautious navigation is strongly recommended everywhere. While all time and labor is volunteered, the San Jacinto Trail Report uses small private donations to cover costs. Spikes are recommended at least for descending, and will become increasingly important with increasing compaction and freeze/thaw cycles. Your contribution keeps the Report available to all, free from advertising or paywalls, and independent from agencies. A key feature of this sequence of storms will be the relative warmth of the air masses which will lead to high freeze levels. The second system, possible in a broad time window between 2nd and 4th December, may produce significant snow in the high country (forecasts have ranged widely from 0-30 inches above 10,000 ft!) On the afternoon of 18th I saw posthole tracks that head down the start of the Caramba Trail, and following the PCT southbound toward Chinquapin Flat, but I have no further details at this time. It was near-whiteout conditions due to wild spindrift above Wellman Divide, but the new snow was firm and overall made for good snowshoeing conditions. The story so far.. A minor storm on the night of Tuesday 21st (sixteenth storm of the winter) produced little snow just an inch in Idyllwild but severe cold and severe winds, erasing all tracks with wild drifting. Spikes are not required. SNOW DEPTHS measured on 30th January 2023 (unless otherwise indicated) and checked again on 1st February are as follows. Search and Rescue advises always hike with someone, and not leave your group. At 11,503, "Old Grayback" provides an excellent high altitude training for those . SGWA lists the elevation gain from momyer creek trailhead to SG summit as 6,062'. Note however that snow depth itself is rarely indicative of the difficulty (or otherwise) of hiking a particular trail. I recorded a short video at San Jacinto Peak early on the morning of Monday 12th December (available here) which gives a feel for conditions as the storm was nearing its end. Spikes could potentially be used to ascend to the highest peaks at this time, although crampons are certainly safer for traversing (e.g., see photo below). South Ridge Trail has been broken from the top of South Ridge Road to Tahquitz Peak with a simple posthole track. Deer Springs Trail has a posthole track to follow along its entire length. Snowfall in Long Valley (8600 ft) has been steady until largely stopping by 1600, with close to 10 inches added since yesterday for a total accumulation there of nearly three feet. Although my original track accurately followed the trail above Little Round Valley, there are now a fair number of alternate shortcut tracks across this slope, so cautious navigation is advised. SNOW DEPTHS measured on 19th December (east side) or 15th December (west side) 2022 are as follows. Another 10+ inches are forecast overnight, which is very possible given current conditions. This was tricky for postholing which went through the ice layer. "It's just a sheet of ice up there," said John Amrhein, emergency services coordinator for the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department. Prior to this storm, conditions had been extremely unsettled for about ten days, with four storms in a week, although only one of those was a significant snow-producing system. Spikes not required to that elevation. Although excellent tracks are now in place and clearly visible for almost all major trails cautious navigation remains recommended. Pack your camera and your taste buds for this delicious adventure to see the sights and explore the food of Southern Italy! Eventually with compaction of the trails caused by increasing hiker traffic and freeze/thaw cycles snowshoes may steadily become less useful, however they will likely remain valuable for off-trail travel in the high country into February. Major snowfall months have also occurred recently, in winters that did not otherwise end up with exceptional annual totals. Note that averages are given; due to strong winds and considerable powder there is extreme drifting. With two further minor snowfalls possible in January, and strong winds in the high country expected on some days causing substantial spindrift, tracks broken through the snow may not last long. UPDATE Wednesday 14th December 2022: Early this morning Anabel and I broke trail up Spitler Peak Trail to the PCT. --Meursault in 'The Stranger', Routes Put on snowshoes and went up to the base of San Gorgonio . Snow cover is about 80% from Strawberry Junction north for about 1.0 mile (roughly 8500 ft), and thereafter essentially continuous to San Jacinto Peak. UPDATE Thursday 29th December: I have uploaded a video from my hike to San Jacinto Peak this morning (available here on YouTube) where I enjoyed a minor snow storm. SNOW DEPTHS measured on 11th January 2023 are as follows. Melting is expected to be steady and start to accelerate into February, but freeze/thaw cycles, compaction, and refreezing overnight may ultimately combine to produce very icy conditions. The fresh snow overnight could have covered any tracks or other signs of a campsite, but "if he's still moving, we'd be able to see his footprints clearly," Amrhein said. Amounts listed may So we recommend getting your permit in advance! Current road and parking lot condition for South Fork Trailheda. The Ernie Maxwell Trail [surveyed 5th January] has patchy snow along its entire length, however it is largely clear for long sections, and the remaining snow is soft. Conditions will remain very unsettled well into the third week of January. With a rapidly changing climate in the region in recent years, it has become increasingly common for there to be little or no difference in snow quantities at mid and higher elevations, often because the high country remains above the cloud, and this system was no exception. Although our perceptions may have been skewed by some extremely dry winters in the past decade, major snowfalls are not as rare as many current residents might think. Note that snow depth itself is rarely indicative of the difficulty (or otherwise) of hiking a particular trail. My Time: 9 hours 17 minutes (moving), 11 hours 37 minutes total. The rain has becoming heavier in the past hour or so. I had the pleasure of hiking the Fish Creek Trail on June 22nd. Spitler Peak Trail had 10 new treefall hazards, almost all in the upper switchbacks. Be prepared for ice and deep snow, bring crampons and /or snow shoes and above all do not hike past your limits. Todays rainfall total has passed an inch in Idyllwild, and various locations in Pine Cove (5800-6500 ft) were reporting 1.1 to 1.3 inches two hours ago. South Ridge Trail [hiked 13th and 17th December] has a well-traveled posthole track through shallow snow as far as Tahquitz Peak. All trails above about 6500 ft are currently lightly, or above 8000 ft moderately, snow-covered. Hiked the South Fork trail to Dry Lake where we camped for the night. Print/PDF map. Currently, and increasingly as snow conditions change, spikes are strongly recommended for the foreseeable future everywhere above about 7000 ft, lower in places. Another tree came down near the start of this trail close to Saddle Junction in Tropical Storm Kay. This may continue for several weeks, or could change given further fresh snowfall forecast. The main track is clearest just above LRV and again close to the Peak junction. Your contribution keeps the Report available to all, free from advertising or paywalls, and independent from agencies. San Gorgonio are popular peaks year-round with Southland hikers, and receive snowfall above roughly 7,000 feet in winter. Per "Tarol" 6-21-2011 I barebooted to Saddle, and then snowshoed back down to help consolidate the track. The first number is the depth of fresh snow from this latest storm, followed in parentheses by the current total snow depth. In addition, there is the possibility of minor snow storms on Thursday 19th and around Sunday 29th January. ft. home is a 2 bed, 3.0 bath property. Forsee Creek, San Bernardino Peak, Momyer, and Vivian Creek trailheads offer a great opportunity to create through hikes that include the popular San Bernardino and San Gorgonio peaks, said Deputy Forest Supervisor John D. Exline. Given colder temperatures for the foreseeable future, melting is expected to slow (or almost stop in the high country) and spikes will remain recommended well into December at least. PCT Mile 181.8 (9070 ft): 4-5 inches (5.5 inches on 12th December), Marion Mountain Trail at junction with PCT (8700 ft): 4-6 inches (6 inches on 12th December), Long Valley (8600 ft): 3-4 inches (5-6 inches on 12th December), Strawberry Junction (8100 ft): 3 inches (4 inches on 12th December), Saddle Junction/approx. Currently there is less than three feet of snow at San Jacinto Peak; I suspect it would be 5-8 feet had we had fractionally cooler conditions in the past month. At the on Monday 13th February 2023 at 1010 the air temperature was 16.8F (-10C), with a windchill temperature of -1.3F (-19C), 95% relative humidity, and a wintry NNW wind sustained at 7 mph gusting to 13.2 mph. The East Ridge Trail (from near Miller Peak to San Jacinto Peak) has a handful of tracks through the continuous snow, though none (including mine) accurately follow the trail route. Watch for trail junctions, dont just follow your feet without looking up. A few minor patches exist close to the top. When to go: June-October. Very cautious navigation is advised throughout the area. Map Information. STAY SAFE!RESCUES IN THE WILDERNESS CAN BE AVOIDED.FOLLOW A FEW SIMPLE RULES, Be prepared Carry Flashlight, Map, Food, Water and Clothing. Note that temperatures fluctuating either side of freezing are forecast for both mid and upper elevations. In my most recent survey there were at least 82 treefall hazards between PCT Miles 170-175 including 20+ major ones, and about six more on PCT Miles 175-177. Estimated Time: 9-12 hours. UPDATE Wednesday 22nd: the first of four storms expected over the next eight days, the sixteenth storm of this winter, produced a very light snowfall but bitterly cold conditions in the San Jacinto mountains overnight. It climbs just fast enough to avoid being frustrating on the ascent, but is gentle enough so as to not be pounding on the descent. As discussed above, additional light snowfall on 3rd and 5th January will further complicate the trail conditions.