Explorer 1
Explorer 1
Another 5 day adventure.
5 days in Mammoth Lakes California with nothing planned but going out and exploring.
Day 1
There was still quite a bit of snow for this time of year. Even that very night it snowed a small amount so the meadow behind our unit looked like this:
And my Tacoma was dusted with fresh snow.
So I set out with my ATV's best equipped for driving on snow. My destination was to check out the trail up to Laurel Lakes. Even before the first switchback I found a snow drift that would stop any larger vehicle from proceeding. The snow would be just too deep for any heavier vehicle.
There were several deep firm drifts covering the road before the meadow with the campsites next to the creek.
As I passed the meadow the road all but disappeared and to proceed further even while being able to drive on top of the snow would risk either siding down sideways or a rollover.
So I returned to the meadow and to the lower more narrow trail (50" or less trail) This trail while deep in snow was at least more level and I didn't risk a roll over or at least if I did I didn't have as far to go to the valley bottom.
The lower trail ends right before the switchbacks up the rocky slope. On the first set there was this large rock that someone in a regular vehicle will have to deal with before going any further.
This was a far as I could get and by the looks of things it will be late summer before the snow melt will be enough to get all the way to the lakes.
I then checked out the trails north of Mammoth along highway 395. Most of the snow along the east side of 395 was gone with some fun patches along the west side. Late in the afternoon it started snowing again, not to hard but still stung the face as one drove along. The forecast was for a few more days of snow showers this week. Being late May this isn't that unusual, but there is still more snow at the higher elevations than I can remember in at least 15 years. While standing in line for a morning fill-up (Starbucks) I over heard a Forest Service employee talking about the amount of snow in the Lakes Basin. Apparently the snow removal on the roads in the lakes basin was quite a task. It has packed down to ice pack and from her description it will be a while before it melts and all the campgrounds will be open.
So much for global warming!
We'll see how some other trails look on the following days.
Thanks,
Fred
Explorer 1
5 days in Mammoth Lakes California with nothing planned but going out and exploring.
Day 1
There was still quite a bit of snow for this time of year. Even that very night it snowed a small amount so the meadow behind our unit looked like this:
And my Tacoma was dusted with fresh snow.
So I set out with my ATV's best equipped for driving on snow. My destination was to check out the trail up to Laurel Lakes. Even before the first switchback I found a snow drift that would stop any larger vehicle from proceeding. The snow would be just too deep for any heavier vehicle.
There were several deep firm drifts covering the road before the meadow with the campsites next to the creek.
As I passed the meadow the road all but disappeared and to proceed further even while being able to drive on top of the snow would risk either siding down sideways or a rollover.
So I returned to the meadow and to the lower more narrow trail (50" or less trail) This trail while deep in snow was at least more level and I didn't risk a roll over or at least if I did I didn't have as far to go to the valley bottom.
The lower trail ends right before the switchbacks up the rocky slope. On the first set there was this large rock that someone in a regular vehicle will have to deal with before going any further.
This was a far as I could get and by the looks of things it will be late summer before the snow melt will be enough to get all the way to the lakes.
I then checked out the trails north of Mammoth along highway 395. Most of the snow along the east side of 395 was gone with some fun patches along the west side. Late in the afternoon it started snowing again, not to hard but still stung the face as one drove along. The forecast was for a few more days of snow showers this week. Being late May this isn't that unusual, but there is still more snow at the higher elevations than I can remember in at least 15 years. While standing in line for a morning fill-up (Starbucks) I over heard a Forest Service employee talking about the amount of snow in the Lakes Basin. Apparently the snow removal on the roads in the lakes basin was quite a task. It has packed down to ice pack and from her description it will be a while before it melts and all the campgrounds will be open.
So much for global warming!
We'll see how some other trails look on the following days.
Thanks,
Fred
Explorer 1
