Forums Current Conditions California Eastside conditions update Viewing 20 posts - 1 through 20 (of 25 total) 1 2 → Author Posts May 3, 2013 at 10:59 pm #578671 jimw 1421 Posts Here are some beta pics from Sat-Tues last week, mostly around Tioga. Conditions were decent, though the snow is still transitional in some areas. Also some stuff was getting pretty warm and rotten, need some good melt-freeze cycles. Weather looks to be vacillating between above and below normal temps, so YMMV. Most importantly, conditions at the Mo-mart are GOING OFF!!! 🙂 Dana plateau. V-bowl is burnt. Many of the upper chutes were getting ridden, then climbed back out. Mostly Coke, Ripper and Powerhouse. 3rd Pillar doesn’t go. Gibbs Powerhouse. It was still worth doing to the bottom last weekend, but was going quick. The diagonal connector requires some walking on dirt to get into, and there’s a burnt section between that and the top of the last snowfield above the cars. Probably not worth it anymore, it’s just as easy to go straight down the drainage to where it ends and talus-hop to the road. Likely not worth doing to the bottom by this weekend. Upper Powerhouse Upper Powerhouse chute entrances felt steeper than normal due to low snowpack Powerhouse exit Ellery was looking pretty bony at the top of the bowl, and Chute Out requires a downclimb. Apparently it was riding pretty well though. Didn’t ride in there myself but heard it was good, there were lots of people up there. Third Pillar. Someone sideslipped about 100 ft down, then decided f*ck this and climbed back out. Two major chockstones completely block the choke. Liberty. Huuuuge wet cornice, super tight entrance, crappy snow. What’s not to like? (umm, not recommended…) Unknown was in good shape. Looked like lots of folks hit it. Top of the plateau. Still a decent amount of snow to skin on. Glacier canyon. Looking up towards Solstice entrance and Dana summit. Sounded like Solstice was riding really well. Not many reports on Dana other than give it time to soften up. Dana and Solstice View of Dana/Plateau/Ellery area from across the road by top of Greenstone area Backside route up to Conness plateau False White White area Saddlebag. Lake was still frozen and skinnable, not sure for how long. Road is patchy. More road than snow on first mile, then more snow than road 2nd mile. Greenstone area looking good Conness area Snow finger/S couloir. S doesn’t quite go from the top… but it is downclimbable. 🙂 Backside of North Peak. We were going to head over there and hit the chutes but bailed. Probably should have gone, I heard they are in good shape. Flinty’s Bottom of Y couloir, and Conness summit chutes. Shrunds just starting to open. Backside route up to top of Conness plateau Top of Flinty’s Shots from the drive home. Dunderberg to Green Creek run looks worth doing, at least from here. Probably a decent amount of schwacking at the Green Creek exit. Twin Lakes/Matterhorn area Shot from near the hairpin turn on the west side of Sonora pass. Is the second one Leavitt/Y? Love the eastside! 🙂 May 4, 2013 at 12:15 am #668329 Ecobrad 2068 Posts Awesome beta, Jim. Now we want a trip report with the chutes ridden. Yes, that is Leavitt Y. May 4, 2013 at 12:15 am #668330 NoKnees 336 Posts Great beta and photo collection… Looks like there is still a lot of fun to be had, even if a little extra work is required to get to it… Where was the second to last shot? The chutes in the background look fun… Now to see if these photos are enough to convince my wife to shift gears from beach volleyball back to the snow… Wish me luck… G Greg - NoKnees May 4, 2013 at 8:11 am #668331 96avs01 875 Posts Excellent beta, many thanks! @noknees wrote: Where was the second to last shot? Hwy 108, west of Sonora Pass 165 Venture Divide/Spark Frankenburners/La Sportiva Spantiks 163W Jones Solution/Phantom Alphas/Dynafit TLT5s 162 Furberg Chris May 5, 2013 at 3:45 am #668332 JSteigs 47 Posts @jimw wrote: Shot from near the hairpin turn on the west side of Sonora pass. Is the second one Leavitt/Y? Yup thats the Y couloir of Leavitt Peak. May 6, 2013 at 3:30 am #668333 JSteigs 47 Posts I’ll post a few from the last two weekends. Sonora Pass And the Dana Couloir May 10, 2013 at 7:28 pm #668334 wjb 163 Posts http://www.mymotherlode.com/news/local/2086932/Tioga-Pass-To-Open.html May 23, 2013 at 5:25 pm #668335 jimw 1421 Posts Update from last weekend. We went out to Saddlebag and did an overnighter. Conditions were FANTASTIC! Super corn in most areas, even a little pow up higher by Conness. Totally smooth, no suncups. Looks like it’s been windy as hell this week so things may have changed, but I think it would be a good bet for this weekend. Saddlebag road was still closed, but is totally clear of snow and bikeable to the lake. Some pics. New partner for this trip. 🙂 Plateau in the backround, pretty burnt. More the usual plateau suspects Powerhouse is pretty burnt. Might be OK up top if you want to climb back out. Ellery is still barely holding on. Saw tracks on the way out, looked like a decent time was had. False White still has plenty of coverage. Riding up Saddlebag road. View out toward White etc Mally approves of the snow around Saddlebag, and says it is prime for playing in and sleeping on! Mike says the fishing is good too! He actually caught a couple fish – we had to improvise a way to cook them with a couple jetboil burners, a thin rock, and some used tin foil. 🙂 Greenstone area White Dana Backing up… Conness area Flinty’s. Aside from Greenstone, this and GPS were the only place we saw tracks the whole time we were out there. Snow finger/S When I was there 3 weeks prior, this sensor was just barely sticking out of the snow. Now it’s sticking out 2 feet. However, on the more N facing aspects things were holding just fine, and even had some new snow. The rock choke in S was actually slightly more filled in than 3 weeks prior. Backside of North Peak Y couloir and Conness summit chutes – schrunds still closed! TEX, at 4:20 PM, on the Spliff… coincidence?? 🙂 Conditions at the Mo-mart are of course going off as well. They now have soft-serve ice cream. Mally approves! May 25, 2013 at 1:54 am #668336 jimw 1421 Posts News flash: SADDLEBAG ROAD IS NOW OPEN!!! 🙂 May 25, 2013 at 6:40 pm #668337 schwalbster 321 Posts Love your dog Jim! :thumbsup: After much research, experimentation and consideration, I have decided adulthood is not for me. Thank you for the opportunity. September 26, 2013 at 11:08 pm #668338 rughty 620 Posts Got the chance to going flying with a friend from work to scope out the extent of the seasons first snowfall on Sunday. Not a bad start for September! My buddy Max getting things ready looking west from just north of Bridgeport (Sonora Pass area?!) the Sawtooth Range through the prop wash You’ll have to excuse my lack of mountain recognition, but I want to say the Palisades?! June Lake resort and our turn around point Looking south towards the big boys of the Eastside with Mammoth on the right From up above this appears to be where “the” spot for pumice sandboarding is?! Sorry…No pics of Dana Plateau Jim W. I was pretty stoked at this point of the flight to see it up close that I forgot to get pics. There wasn’t anything in the couloirs anyways, just on top. Awesome little adventure. Hopefully this winter will bring quite a bit more of the white stuff!!! April 17, 2014 at 1:46 am #668339 Incalescent 225 Posts Tioga is open to the park gate. Game on. http://goldenincalescent.blogspot.com/ May 1, 2014 at 5:26 pm #668340 wjb 163 Posts Tioga opens tomorrow http://www.nps.gov/yose/parknews/tioga-road-in-yosemite-national-park-to-open-tomorrow-friday-may-2-at-noon.htm October 21, 2014 at 12:15 am #668341 aksltxlt 621 Posts Trekked out to the “eastside” for some big vert and long lines. Volcom sk8park! Mammoth Ca… has a very unique bowl As in par with many eastside lines…. its the gnar.. all the trannys and coping are different Javi from south lake tahoe blasts! Maybe the Volcom sk8park will be snowed in this season? February 11, 2015 at 6:28 pm #780327 bcall8 125 Posts Any updates on the snow conditions since the last storm? Any good touring around Mammoth? February 11, 2015 at 9:20 pm #780344 Cbalke 237 Posts @bcall8 I havn’t been down to the eastside this winter but @earnyourturn has been posting up some shots on his IG View this post on Instagram A post shared by Zak Mills (@_zakmills) February 16, 2015 at 7:45 am #780491 JSteigs 47 Posts I went out for a drive this weekend just to take a look at the conditions on 395 down to Lee Vining. It looked as you would expect, but as a bonus Virginia Lakes road was plowed, and open, not all the way to the lake though. I rode South Peak, the snow was staying pretty wintery. There looked to be good coverage on Black mountain as well, but I took the low hanging fruit. Sorry no pics. March 3, 2015 at 11:17 am #780869 powderjunkie 1669 Posts a little late for an update, but last week, PN and I overnighted out towards Duck Pass just after the area got 12-16 of very dry powder. we found a little of everything from light pow over very little base, crust and warming snow where the sun kissed it, and some good turns where it wasn’t too deep. overall we felt there wasn’t enough base where it needed to be for good turns and the rolling terrain out to duck pass is not the greatest for splitters. there are some great looking lines out there past blue crag and before the barney lake headwall area. March 19, 2015 at 7:57 am #781323 TEX 2486 Posts Conness and North Peak from Black Peak 3/14/15 Looking south from Black Peak into Lundy Canyon 3/14/15 March 19, 2015 at 6:43 pm #781341 Cbalke 237 Posts Thanks for the stoke @tex I was beginning to wonder if there was any snow back there. Now I just need to time my saddlebag trip. 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