snow conditions in the Tetons and wind river range?

Hi!

I am heading up to the Tetons in few days and would love to climb the lower and upper exum while I am up there. Would I need crampons and/or ice axes? How is the snow condition?

What about the condition in wind river range? I bailed last year due to too much snow and would love to go back and climb in a couple of weeks. Would that be too early?

Some images of snow and avalanches in the Tetons from two days ago here:
tetonclimbing.blogspot.com

I'd plan on being on snow from near the Platforms all the way up.

Yeah...ice axe and crampons. Watch for wet slides. Careful going past those gullies on Nez Perce.

There's still a ton of snow in the Winds. Most of the good snow climbing areas are way snowed in so getting there would be a feat, unless you enjoy a god slog. Ice axe is necessary on certain slopes but crampons are not.

^I'm assuming Titcomb basin is snowed in pretty well. Curious about the conditions on the standard route into Gannet.

My friend is a member of Tip Top SAR, and they were doing training with their helicopter and some extra time so they flew around a bit. She reported that the snow starts just above 10,000 feet. It has been warm up here, finally, so maybe melted out by mid July.

^thanks!

I was in garnet this past weekend. Snow starts at the platforms lots of people skiing

I was out on the backside of the Curque these past few days and theres patchy snow as low as 8800. Snow is really starting around 9300. I would be willing to assume that the cirque is somewhat snowed in but titcomb is definitely snowed in. Last report I heard was postholing up to your knees over jackass pass so I would assume most north facing areas above 9300 are gonna keep solid snow for a few more weeks.

In interest of updating the beta list here. I called the Pinedale ranger station and they said that snow starts continously about 4 miles from the Elkhart Park TH. They also said there is about 4' of snow in Titcomb still.

Anyone been in the Big Horns recently? Similar conditions?

nkane- A lot of snow still in the Cloud Peak area. Big snow year this season.

Thanks for your replies! I guess my annual trip to the winds have to wait a bit longer.

I will be up in the Tetons for a wedding this weekend and report back on the conditions.

Cheers!

Shiho

I was up in the winds last week, attempting Gannett via Elkhart Park - Titcomb Basin. There is lots of snow, starting a mile or so from the trailhead. We were on snowshoes almost the entire time up to Titcomb Basin. The 1st half of the approach went pretty slow because we had to routefind through the trees with little visible trail. However, this part of the trail was melting out pretty fast, so it shouldn't be a problem for long. The 2nd half, mostly above treeline, went much faster, and snow conditions were a bit better. The streams were maybe a bit high, but there were lots of snowbridges and we didn't have trouble with any crossings. Lakes were still mostly ice covered, and we had almost no mosquitos!

The standard route up Gannett was in good condition, we climbed mostly at night to get the firmest snow. We made it up to the summit ridge without issue, but bailed ~100 yds from the summit because we were scared of some cornices. Other folks might not find this to be a problem, especially with a few more weeks of melt.

Bighorns got massive late snows combined with a rainy cool spring. I'm up there a lot and it's still packed above 10k. It's an adventure getting into Wilderness basin from the west right now, as the pass above Solitude is packed with snow.

WyomingSummits wrote:Bighorns got massive late snows combined with a rainy cool spring. I'm up there a lot and it's still packed above 10k. It's an adventure getting into Wilderness basin from the west right now, as the pass above Solitude is packed with snow.

Hoping to go to the cirque around July 1 if conditions permit. Posting a comment so I can follow this thread.

Nkane----I'll be on Bighorn peak this weekend and will give you an update on levels above 11k. I'm on bighorn because Circle park is your best bet to get on a Bighorns alpine peak/rock right now. It's a lower elevation TH and you have no stream crossings like west tensleep, lost twins, or battle park. Battle park TH access road is a muddy mess. Circle park to the east cirques of Bighorn and Darton are the way to go in snowy spring conditions.

C. Archibald wrote:Hoping to go to the cirque around July 1 if conditions permit. Posting a comment so I can follow this thread.

^^^ yeah last summer (same time of year) Wolfs Head was on the itinerary and I skipped it because the approach was showering giant blocks of snow. Pingora was bone dry. Climbed two routes there.

This summer I'm focusing on Warbonnet.

WyomingSummits wrote:Nkane----I'll be on Bighorn peak this weekend and will give you an update on levels above 11k. I'm on bighorn because Circle park is your best bet to get on a Bighorns alpine peak/rock right now. It's a lower elevation TH and you have no stream crossings like west tensleep, lost twins, or battle park. Battle park TH access road is a muddy mess. Circle park to the east cirques of Bighorn and Darton are the way to go in snowy spring conditions.