Current Conditions

[susan]

Sunday looks like a wash though. Snow even at higher elevations.

[susan]

A little rough getting over Cold Springs Summit on Beasore last night due to snow but doable. Ran into too much snow and ice a few miles into Grizzly though. We might have made it with our 4wd truck but was too slick for our friends AWD car. Nice along Minarets.

Great weather today with only a few moments of blustery winds and threatening clouds.

[dj]

Thanks for the update Susan.   I can fill in a little more.    We did the Beasore->Grizzly->Little Chiquito->Minarets->Beasore loop w/ a 4wd yesterday.   The snow was soft/slushy.   Probably cleaned the tires.     We saw some runners along Beasore near Cold Springs Junction.    We snowshoed at Chilkoot Lk.     The entire loop was really easy w/ a 4WD.   The extra clearance was necessary.    Got a little muddy coming back on Beasore (from Minarets).    No downed trees.   Only saw 2 other vehicles (parked) once we got past CSJ.   Probably in a day or two there will be far less snow.   Hazy weather, but nice to see snow on the Sierra Crest.

[John]

Thanks dj for your report. A successful full loop is great news. We were happy to find the Minarets gate open.

[YETI]

Wonder if next weekend is gonna pan out....

[susan]

That's great news DJ! Nice shot, hah cow enhancements not very noticeable on my cell phone anyway.

 

[John]

So dj, do you think 2wd regular-clearance cars would be ok getting to the Balls next weekend?

[John]

Fri night getting unstuck on Grizzly Rd-almost slid off the edge.
There is about 6+ inches of snow on the left side of the road here.



Free at last!!

[YETI]

Holy cowpie snowcones.

looks epic.

[dj]

Some new funky yoga pose there John....  "Stranded Warrior"?   That nice pic explains a dicy part of Grizzly we drove by with a drop-off on the north side and a few concerning wayward tire-tracks.  I geared down when I saw those ruts!   Thanks for making an initial slice through    The road got easier after that. 

As far as 2WD to The Balls, I can't be certain but.....   maybe the Minarets approach is easier (from N. Fork).  We didn't drive the downhill portion of Minarets from the gate so it's unknown to me.   Probably depends on tire tread, just exactly how much clearance the car has and how much snow melts.   The whole southern exposure portion of Beasore (from Minarets to well past Portuguese overlook) had almost no snow, just wet dirt.    Minarets from Lower Chiquoto CG turnoff to Beasore was really easy.  If you go from Bass Lake, the crux would be on the downhill from Cold Spring Junction to past Jones Store.   

[EDIT]  BRING CHAINS, just in case!  And maybe a shovel.  Z-type cable chains with rubber tensioners are easy to put on.

The reward will be great though!    Really nice up there!   Dogwoods look set to bloom in a week or two.

[mungeclimber]

good beta, thx dj!

[John]

Stranded Warrior pose, I love it! I also like "Downward Dumbass" pose.

We were discussing how we thought we had avoided our annual Springtime getting stuck in the snow due to the lack of winter this year.....but couldn't resist after all! Our truck actually got stuck getting set up to drag our friends car away from the edge of the road. That teensy tilt of the road downhill really kicked our ass. We had to dig down to clean pavement and then smash the layer of ice with....the ever-so-versatile Dammer©, thanks Dan!

[dj]

YIKES!    That's way nastier than I first thought.    Good job getting out of that mess.   The snow was much more forgiving at 2pm the next day.    You guys are hard core travelling icy roads at night.   

I edited the 2WD beta above and suggest carrying chains.    We had chains last weekend, but didn't need to use them.   

[daniel banquo merrick]

Use those DAMMERRs, they can be replaced when they wear out.

[John]

Beasore and Grizzly are bone dry. No signs of snow from the last storm.