headed up to palisades this weekend. was curious about how much snow coverage there is on the trail... i am guessing it is prolly dry up to 1st or 2nd lake...? thanks!

I'll take some pics. I'm heading up there tommorrow to ski the U notch and do polemonium (assuming everything goes to plan). When are you headed out of town?

rdesota wrote:I'll take some pics. I'm heading up there tommorrow to ski the U notch and do polemonium (assuming everything goes to plan). When are you headed out of town?

rdesota excellent! have a great trip. we are leaving friday night so i can check up until then...

Post up when you find out! I'm planning on heading to N.Pal Memorial Day weekend. I'm mostly curious about how consolidated the snow will be (if snowshoes are required), what the night temps are like, and the conditions on U Notch. If anyones figures those out, I would be greatful to hear the conditions. Thanks!

Post pictures when you get them because I love the palisades and want to hike them vicariously through your photos. Thanks.

Weather was much cooler than we thought higher up. Snow in the morning was VERY firm. No snow unitil the aspens before First lake. Even then, it was on and off again snow. Solid snow from first lake on (even though you could find areas of no snow). Later in the day, snow was completely rotten down past second lake - if you are planning on being lower later in the day - you should bring snow shoes, skis or something; otherwise, it would be miserable in spots. Higher up, it's winter hard pack conditions. Unfortunately, not much corn due to the weather. Was cold and really windy. Seems just warm enought to warm the lower snow without warming the upper snow much. I think in a couple of weeks, might be better. All in all, not as much snow as we thought as we had to hike a while before getting on skis. I'll get some pics together...

rdesota wrote:Weather was much cooler than we thought higher up. Snow in the morning was VERY firm. No snow unitil the aspens before First lake. Even then, it was on and off again snow. Solid snow from first lake on (even though you could find areas of no snow). Later in the day, snow was completely rotten down past second lake - if you are planning on being lower later in the day - you should bring snow shoes, skis or something; otherwise, it would be miserable in spots. Higher up, it's winter hard pack conditions. Unfortunately, not much corn due to the weather. Was cold and really windy. Seems just warm enought to warm the lower snow without warming the upper snow much. I think in a couple of weeks, might be better. All in all, not as much snow as we thought as we had to hike a while before getting on skis. I'll get some pics together...

thanks for the update rdesota... would u recommend skis for the approach to the palisades? or do u think snowshoes would suffice given that its hardpack higher up like u mentioned... we plan to hike from trailhead to glacier in one day.

we skiied from before first lake all the way up. It was very doable except for one spot where it got a little too steep for our skins - probably 300 lineal fee, besides that it was good with skis and it makes getting out fast. That being said, I can't recommend it one way or another becuase it depends upon your comfort level on skis etc. For me personally, it would seem snowshoes would be tough from third lake up because of the angle. (I haven't done much snowshoeing). We hugged the line up to the glacier nearest Temple Crag, Gayley. It was good.

Sorry about the pic quality...forgot the camera and only had an iphone.

excellent! thanks for the conditions info and photos. will post some of our own photos after this wkend....

rdesota wrote:Sorry about the pic quality...forgot the camera and only had an iphone

Your pictures are awesome. That first one has me drooling. T minus three weeks until I'm all up in that.

The un-named gully climber's right of Temple Crag sure looks sweet! But there is often black ice at the top -- hidden by a top layer of more recent snow -- so please be prepared...

Snowball, hope you were up there on saturday. Went for a hike up the S. Fork today, windy with snow flurries,

yes, i saw your tracks today.... was there saturday and sunday. hiked up saturday. snow flurries later on sunday. came down. snowshoes useful from approx 1st lake and beyond.

photos: 9 may 2010, sunday 7:30a


photos: 9 may 2010, sunday 7:30a

That’s some fantastic stuff guys. I’ve got permits for the first weekend of June, so please keep the reports coming.