A Mountaineers class headed out for an overnight at the top of the Railroad Grade (~6400') for crevasse training. I'm writing this brief report just to clarify where snow conditions are now. With summer coming fast, expect substantial changes in the next weeks.
We departed around noon Saturday May 24th; the road was snow-covered and impassible at 3170' , about half a mile from the official trailhead. When we returned the next day, the snow had receded a hundred feet or so. No cars had tried to make it to the official trailhead yet, but it feels like only a few days. There was no snow on the road before the start of snowpatches, so you won't cross snow when trying to get to the start of the trip.
We saw similar rapid changes on the path. It's largely snow covered until the creek crossing -- there were a few short patches of dirt on the way down before the trail turns up to river. The winter trail, following the river bed, will be inaccessible in the next few days: we saw rapidly-melting snow bridges, and one crossing that required a large careful step. There were more holes to look out for than solid snow. As melt increases, expect the river crossings on the Park Butte trail to become challenging.
Snow conditions were mushy. Hikers (including day-hikers exploring Park Butte in the snow) spent a lot of time post-holing; snowshoers found the trail slippery at all elevations. Early morning snow is firmer, but afternoon snow saw lots of our team falling over on steep descents.
Come prepared for damp conditions and enjoy the early season beauty!
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