Early snow on Mt Conness
3 Oct 1998 - by Anouchka Gaillard
A quick report on conditions I and a couple of friends found at
Tuolumme Meadows last week-end.
In short, the weather conditions were a lot better than expected.
We got a campsite at Tuolumme Meadows (w/o reservation) on Friday
night and it was quite cold (18F that night).
The next day, it was sunny and cloudless so we headed off to
attempt Conness from Saddlebag Lake at 8:15 AM.
The creeks were filled with ice in different shapes and structures:
it was beautiful.
The climb to the pass between White Mountain and Conness was full
of powdery snow. We were glad we had brought ice-axes along.
Then from the pass, I remembered a report saying that dropping down and *not*
following the ridge was the way to go. I am not sure that it is the best way.
Any way we did drop down, and climbed back up to the pass elevation,
in a miserable icy wind.
By 12:45pm we were quite tired, cold, and still 1100 feet from the summit.
Conness was surrounded by a cloud that never lifted...
At this point we bagged the idea of getting to the top and started descending.
The next day, we opted for the easy option: Lembert Dome (we made it!!!! ;-) ).
By Sunday, there was no snow at Tioga Pass, and Dana was sprinkled with snow
that did not form a blanket yet, from a third of its way up from the pass.
Tuolumme Meadows campground closed that day.
To file a trip report, please fill in the Report Entry form or contact the webmaster.
