Snow on the ‘Con

A funny thing happened on the way to the forum, I mean Hi-Lo’s meeting…

I took a short trip up to the Rubicon staging area just to see what was up. I got there and there wasn’t as much snow as I thought there would be. So I headed up the trail.

It was a beautiful drive. Still a little bumpy at lower elevations but it smoothed out as the snow got deeper.

Miller Meadow was partially frozen over.

Miller Lake hadn’t started to freeze yet.

I turned around at the wide intersection of Ellis Peak and the Rubicon. There were tracks further up the trail but I had a meeting to go to. On the trip out, I could see that my diff was dragging on the snow. I am running 33″ tires on the Colorado.

As always with winter travel, be prepared for anything. Here is one example. Not only is there a snag over the tail that will come in to play with more snow, but there is a tree down on the edge of the trail that will soon be covered with snow. If someone were to drive over it, they would puncture their tire.

My advice, stay in the middle of the trail.

This snag will surely fall over the winter. Always carry a saw in case it falls after you’ve passed and need to remove it to get out.

Remember the side trails within the Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit are already closed. That means the Buck Lake Trail, Middle Fork Trail and the Noonchecter Mine Trail. Not all have gates, and not all gates are closed, even if they should be. It is the users responsibility to know where they are and if the trails are open.

The Richardson Lake Trail is open until January 1st, as is Ellis Peak Trail and other in the Tahoe National Forest.

Always be prepared to spend the night: heat source, shelter, sleeping bag, food, water, etc.

Rubicon Ronin