Thornton gap north trail conditions?
Supposed to be starting a 5 day hike starting Wednesday 27th at Thornton Gap heading north and was curious about the current trail conditions. Thanks for any help!!
I only drove on Skyline Drive south of Thornton Gap last weekend and encountered quite a bit of snow in the Rose River/Big Meadow area and much more snow has fallen since. My guess is that there will be significant snow north of Tornton Gap this week from the recent storms.
Big Meadows webcam provides some indication of conditions: http://www.nps.gov/webcams-shen/bvc.jpg
Is that skyline drive?
Are these hikable conditions?
I believe the webcam faces Skyline Drive. Hikeable? I guess it depends but there was more snow than I preferred last weekend in areas sheltered from the sun. The backcountry office was helpful last week when I called asking about conditions. May be worth giving them a ring tomorrow.
You don't have their number do you? I appreciate all the help
This may help.Originally Posted by BryceandFozzie
- Call 540-999-3500, Option 1, Option 1 for Skyline Drive Status
Winter conditions occasionally force the closure of Skyline Drive. When the status of the Drive changes the Park's informational phone line is updated. Call 540-999-3500, choose Option 1, then Option 1 again for current status. Or follow us on Twitter. More »
I am headed Compton Gap SOBO to Big Meadows - was wondering the same thing - and there was more snow over the past weekend - jut wondering if anyone had been out there REAL WORLD lately......
Well my dog and I are going tomorrow for 4 or 5 days for better or worse lol
I will say that other than the snow and cold temps, it was a great brief trip for anyone looking for solitude. I only saw two day hikers on the first day and none at all on the second day. No backpackers at all. Also, and this was kind of odd, zero signs of life around camp - not even any birds or squirrels that I can recall. I'm not used to being out in the woods in colder conditions so maybe animals are just hunkered down in those conditions.
Let me know how it was when you get back!
Should be back Saturday night or Sunday. On a different note, with food, water, and dogs food my pack weighs right at 30 lbs. so, I'm pretty happy with that..
Well I'm back a little early. Ran into some pretty cold and windy conditions. Much of the trail was covered with 6 inches of snow where no one had hiked yet. I ended up walking skyline drive for much of the hike. So Fozzie and I were able to cover 30 some miles in only a day and a half.
Just came SOBO this past weekend from Compton Gap - there was still substantial snow - mostly ON the trail as it is generally shallower than the surrounding ground and doesn't get the sun as well - the "snow" was mostly ice in places as the temps overnight were below freezing.
We stopped at Thornton Gap - reports from NOBO hikers indicated 3-4 foot drifts from Thornton Gap to Skyland
No snow south of Swift Run Gap.
Hiked entire park nobo first week in April. Most snow we encountered was between Big Meadows and Skyland. Trail was treacherous there due to ice pack where trail is on a ledge. Didn't really have any significant trouble though. Cold temps and harsh wind was the biggest problem. When we finished on April 6th, the weather was beautiful...figures... Some places on the trail had drifts that were pretty deep--maybe 2-3 feet. I would imagine that snow will be there a while. As mentioned before, snow was most significant in the trail itself, but really not a problem.
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