Three Sisters Loop - 6/30 - 7/4? Snow? Conditions?

[withfilm]

Hey all,

I've got an upcoming trip to hike the Three Sisters Trail loop 6/30 - 7/4. Friends called the ranger to get an idea of what the snow conditions are currently and couldn't get a clear answer.

OpenSummit is showing snow levels anywhere from 20"-50" on the loop. Not sure how accurate that data is.

Would it be safe to assume this trip is a no-go? Can anyone recommend a 3-5 day backpacking option that would be doable in this time frame?

[johnspeth]

My bike and I were on the McKenzie Hiway on June 11. The snow coverage is widely visible from Dee Wright. I think the snow is melting fast now. I climbed to Little Belknap Crater (peak at 6300 ft) and noted that coverage is about 10% in that expanse. I'll bet that 10% will be gone by June 30. There's not much snow I saw below 5000 ft.

You positively will find lots of snow if you go to the Chambers Lakes area. And that snow sticks around well into August and often later. Mosquitoes might be a problem in some areas, snow or no snow.

If you really have to know, why not drive the McKenzie Hiway and take a look? It's open now.

How much snow can you tolerate?

[withfilm]

Thanks for the update! I'm coming from Portland so, I won't be able to scout the area until I'm actually there.

I think it's more about coming prepared and checking what our group is willing to tolerate. If we have a ton of snow, it's unclear how much more time this would add to the route.

[teachpdx]

This is one of Jerry's favourite links to drop when people ask about snow depths:

https://adamschneider.net/hiking/snow_depth.html

And it is generally pretty helpful. Looking at the Three Sisters area, it appears that there is still 60"+ of snow on most of the PCT in that area... the east side of the loop looks a little more sparse. Some areas will be melted out, but that's still a lot of snow. All you need is to end up with one sidehill you can't traverse with your equipment and you have to turn around.

It's likely doable in the five days you have planned, just slow and probably tedious after a little while. And there could be some truly sketchy sections in that much snow. It wouldn't be my idea of fun. I'd carry microspikes at a minimum.

As far as alternates, your options to get decent mileage are pretty limited this early in the year. Getting out east toward the Ochocos or Strawberry Mountain would offer the ability to put together some longer loops with less mileage on snow. Or maybe south? Does anybody here know conditions down in the Trinity Alps? That's usually another good earlier season backpacking destination but I think they got even more snow down there than we did. The only other trail I know about where you can currently do 50+ miles with no snow is the Corvallis to Coast trail, but that can be a bit boring.

[withfilm]

Super helpful info! I just want to be realistic about the conditions and our expectations if we're driving there from Portland.

This is one of Jerry's favourite links to drop when people ask about snow depths:

https://adamschneider.net/hiking/snow_depth.html

And it is generally pretty helpful. Looking at the Three Sisters area, it appears that there is still 60"+ of snow on most of the PCT in that area... the east side of the loop looks a little more sparse. Some areas will be melted out, but that's still a lot of snow. All you need is to end up with one sidehill you can't traverse with your equipment and you have to turn around.

It's likely doable in the five days you have planned, just slow and probably tedious after a little while. And there could be some truly sketchy sections in that much snow. It wouldn't be my idea of fun. I'd carry microspikes at a minimum.

As far as alternates, your options to get decent mileage are pretty limited this early in the year. Getting out east toward the Ochocos or Strawberry Mountain would offer the ability to put together some longer loops with less mileage on snow. Or maybe south? Does anybody here know conditions down in the Trinity Alps? That's usually another good earlier season backpacking destination but I think they got even more snow down there than we did. The only other trail I know about where you can currently do 50+ miles with no snow is the Corvallis to Coast trail, but that can be a bit boring.

[illbeyourhuckleberry]

How did your trip go? I'm planning to go next week and curious about how much snow I may encounter.

[TimJ]

I'm planning to go next week and curious about how much snow I may encounter.

I'm going on Monday (7/17) and would also like any updates on conditions. I read on Backpacking in the Pacific NW on facebook that a bunch of Green Lakes Trail was covered with blow down. I may call the ranger later this week if I don't hear more details.
Tim

[TimJ]

FYI - this link for PCT snow conditions shows snow cover along the PCT for maybe 12 miles south of Opie Dilldock Pass.
https://www.postholer.com/snow/Pacific-Crest-Trail/1#OR

[retired jerry]

That is one of my favorite links

Thanks to Adam for making that

Weird how much snow there is in Three Sisters but Mt Hood is mostly melted off

Even weirder is the amount of snow in Trinity Alps in Northern California - that normally melts off a month earlier

[oldandslow]

Mt Bachelor is running their web cams. It looks to me like there has been a lot of recent melting.