There are current Roundtop pictures taken last weekend on the Backcountry Ski/Board Trips Reports forum on the Message Board at www.thebackcountry.net . Have a great climb !

Dito what Kish said.

I was up there on the 19th, climbed CMC (right side) as well. Good conditions all the way up. A thin breakable crust on top with nice soft snow under that. Had crampons, but were not needed as I was able to kick step in quite well. The skiing in the North side bowl was good - mostly wind scoured but breakable, semi-soft snow at top and as I got further down close to Winnemuca Lake the top inch or so was nice corn. It was a bit warmer on Fri. than the rest of the weekend.

Have fun everyone! Wish I could join ya all, seeing how I don't believe I've met most of you going. However, had already planned a Mammoth trip instead.

I sorta have a hankerin' to do Thunder Mountain (the summit above Kirkwood), & according to my calculations there should be a little bit of time following the Round Top trip. Anybody interested in going to Silver Lake afterwards & giving it a go? With a little planning (& a shuttle), one could start at Silver Lake, summit Thunder, then end up at the base of Kirkwood afterwards. One-way from Silver Lake to the summit would be 3-4 miles. Skis would make this quite feasible (i.e. it would be way preferable if you had skis)!

Going to have to bail, Becky made regional championships.......never would have guessed.

I'm sorta late to this party, but is this still on for Saturday? Scrounging up a pair of snowshoes on such short notice might be an issue but if I can then I'll be there. Did it two years ago and had a great time.

Diggler wrote:I sorta have a hankerin' to do Thunder Mountain (the summit above Kirkwood), & according to my calculations there should be a little bit of time following the Round Top trip. Anybody interested in going to Silver Lake afterwards & giving it a go? With a little planning (& a shuttle), one could start at Silver Lake, summit Thunder, then end up at the base of Kirkwood afterwards. One-way from Silver Lake to the summit would be 3-4 miles. Skis would make this quite feasible (i.e. it would be way preferable if you had skis)!

A better option IMO would be to follow the ridge over to Thunder. Bob and I did something similar a few years back, albeit in the other direction, traversing the ridge from Martin Point over Thunder, Timble etc. to Round Top, descending Crescent Moon Couloir. One of the best snowshoe outings there is around Tahoe, I think.

jeff wrote: Scrounging up a pair of snowshoes on such short notice might be an issue....

Hey Jeff - This outfit seems to rent snowshoes for a reasonable price, their shop in Sonora is a quick jog of the 108:

Sierra Nevada Adventure Co.
173 S. Washington St.
Sonora, CA
209.795.9310
8am to 6pm Daily
http://snacattack.com/

Alternatively, I've got a spare pare of MSR Denali Evo Acsents I could lend you if you can fetch them from downtown Oakland.

For what it's worth.....next year I'm in. Not ready for a snow climb yet.
Cheers, Troy

Matthew Holliman wrote:

Diggler wrote:I sorta have a hankerin' to do Thunder Mountain (the summit above Kirkwood), & according to my calculations there should be a little bit of time following the Round Top trip. Anybody interested in going to Silver Lake afterwards & giving it a go? With a little planning (& a shuttle), one could start at Silver Lake, summit Thunder, then end up at the base of Kirkwood afterwards. One-way from Silver Lake to the summit would be 3-4 miles. Skis would make this quite feasible (i.e. it would be way preferable if you had skis)!

A better option IMO would be to follow the ridge over to Thunder. Bob and I did something similar a few years back, albeit in the other direction, traversing the ridge from Martin Point over Thunder, Timble etc. to Round Top, descending Crescent Moon Couloir. One of the best snowshoe outings there is around Tahoe, I think.

Thanks, Matthew- I'll consider this. I might get ahold of you between now & then to get some beta.

I remember two years ago when we did this one of the guys (jeff I think) got a ticket because he hadn't bought a sno-park pass. The fine is $87. You can get the passes at Kirkwood and some other places (there's a list here) -

http://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=1233

Somewhere upthread there is a list of places in the bay area that rent snowshoes -- REI and Marmot Mountain Works, for example. I think Kirkwood does also.

jeff wrote:I'm sorta late to this party, but is this still on for Saturday? Scrounging up a pair of snowshoes on such short notice might be an issue but if I can then I'll be there. Did it two years ago and had a great time.

Snow shoes can be rented at the Kirkwood cross country center.

rhyang wrote:I remember two years ago when we did this one of the guys (jeff I think) got a ticket because he hadn't bought a sno-park pass. The fine is $87. You can get the passes at Kirkwood and some other places (there's a list here) -

http://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=1233

Somewhere upthread there is a list of places in the bay area that rent snowshoes -- REI and Marmot Mountain Works, for example. I think Kirkwood does also.

That was me. First time there so I had no idea I needed a parking pass. Not going to be able to make it this year so have fun everyone and be safe.

Coming. Driving early morning from North Bay/San Rafael area. Carpool?

Squishy, I can definitely carpool with you. PM me with a time/location to meet.

Look forward to meeting all of you! As promised, I will bring some Fat Tire with me.