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Trail Conditions 2017, go to First Post for Current Conditions

50K views 180 replies 53 participants last post by  FuzzyZ 
#1 · (Edited)
Currently, updated Currently, updated December 6th, 2017, the trail conditions are:

NOTE: The trail is currently open. Check here or the El Dorado County page for most recent updates.

Loon trailhead: Patches of snow, lots of ice, the bowl is treacherous. I would avoid it.

Wentworth Springs trailhead: Same as Loon, road is very icy.

Buck Island to Rubicon Springs: Clear.

Tahoe trailhead: 8 inches of snow over the top by Miller

Temperatures in the low 40's during the day, low 30's at night.

Boilerplate Winter Advice:

There are very few people on the trail during the off season (October through the melt), always be prepared to extricate yourself! Well set up and maintained rigs, lockers, 37” plus tires, a good winch, charging system, dual batteries, 100’ of extra cable, straps, and hardware are necessities to move in the snow. Always carry food, shelter, and warm clothes. Ham radio or satellite phone are the ONLY ways to communicate out of the Rubicon.

Temperatures can be VERY cold, in the single digits, go prepared!

Always carry a toilet...Wag Bag it.

Fire restrictions are NOT in place, which means campfires are allowed with a permit, but you still must have a permit from the Forest to have a fire or propane fired device (stove, fire, etc.).

Hope this helps., 2017, the trail conditions are:

NOTE: The trail is currently open. Check here or the El Dorado County page for most recent updates.

Loon trailhead: Patches of snow, lots of ice, the bowl is treacherous. I would avoid it.

Wentworth Springs trailhead: Same as Loon, road is very icy.

Buck Island to Rubicon Springs: Clear.

Tahoe trailhead: 8 inches of snow over the top by Miller

Temperatures in the low 40's during the day, low 30's at night.

Boilerplate Winter Advice:

There are very few people on the trail during the off season (October through the melt), always be prepared to extricate yourself! Well set up and maintained rigs, lockers, 37” plus tires, a good winch, charging system, dual batteries, 100’ of extra cable, straps, and hardware are necessities to move in the snow. Always carry food, shelter, and warm clothes. Ham radio or satellite phone are the ONLY ways to communicate out of the Rubicon.

Temperatures can be VERY cold, in the single digits, go prepared!

Always carry a toilet...Wag Bag it.

Fire restrictions are NOT in place, which means campfires are allowed with a permit, but you still must have a permit from the Forest to have a fire or propane fired device (stove, fire, etc.).

Hope this helps.
 
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#125 ·
Went in WWS through Airport Flat yesterday, we had a group of 4 and there was another group of 4 that all went through We all went out Loon Lake.

From the looks of it we were the first to break through, several downed trees and the trail is essentially a small river at several points. Anyway, WWS is passable now. Bring a chainsaw just in case there is more carnage. Lockers/winch required.
 
#129 ·
Rubicon Main Info

RUBICON TRAIL IS CLOSED
Warning

This Winter has been epic! As of May 20, 2017, monitoring protocols have been met so the current conditions warrant CLOSURE of the Rubicon Trail. Loon Lake to the Intertie is not effected by this closure, however, it is important from a safety standpoint that only very prepared vehicles and experienced drivers attempt traveling on the trail in this area.
 
#132 ·
It's open again. :smokin:

https://www.edcgov.us/Rubicon/

RUBICON TRAIL IS OPEN
Use Caution
As of today, May 26, 2017, monitoring protocols of current conditions warrant reopening of the Rubicon Trail. Be aware of 1-6’ snow drifts past Ellis Creek. It is important from a safety standpoint that only very prepared vehicles and experienced drivers attempt traveling on the trail in these areas.
 
#134 ·
The snow is melting fast and the trail is drying out. At this point there isn't any snow that is difficult to get past/over until you get to Little Sluice. From there to Thousand Dollar to Arnolds there are still large and sketchy sidehill drifts.

If anyone does plan to go to Buck and you have the rig and experience for it, take a saw. There are lots of trees down on the trail and a large area of blowdown just this side of Buck.

For that matter, the trail is quite passable all the way to Rubicon Springs (I walked it yesterday) and probably to observation unless there is some trail damage. As stated, there are a LOT of trees down, so the first folks through will be doing a lot of chain saw and winch work.
 
#140 ·
Hey Art,

No snow, lots of water moving. The box culvert at Jerrett Creek is in good shape, but the trail around it has a minor washout that will need to be addressed. Also lots of logs and wood in the trail to be moved. Other than that, it's all you!

John
 
#144 ·
The debris is clear, the trail is clear to the top of Big Sluice. Going down sluice to the springs is no problem just some trees down. If you want to go that far, take a 24" chain saw and it will be plenty to take out the debris that is down in the trail.
 
#147 ·
We are going in to retrieve the second vehicle of the two stranded rigs on Saturday . This one is the full size Chevy truck that is just a little east of Observation Point. Doug took his quad on tracks as far as he could and hiked the rest of the way to the truck. He said the trail is gonna need a bit more work, mostly tree cutting and a bit of shoveling. I'm pretty sure that no one has driven this section yet.
 
#148 ·
It's open all the way now. I drove my old Land Rover yesterday from San Francisco to Loon Lake, through to Lake Tahoe and back to San Francisco. Some very deep water past the springs (over my hood), a couple of very nasty boulders in the middle of the trail near the top of Cadillac Hill and the snow drifts are treacherous but will probably be gone in a few more days.
 
#149 ·
coming from Chicago to run the Rubicon

We are headed for the Rubicon this Friday the 23rd. from Chicago area. Can anyone tell me what the temps are, during the day and at night? It's between the 70s and 90s here. We are planning on running the trail from Loon to Tahoe, camping at the springs for a couple days. Are we going to freeze to death?! Its a long drive, and I just want everyone in our group to know what their in for.
 
#150 ·
We are headed for the Rubicon this Friday the 23rd. from Chicago area. Can anyone tell me what the temps are, during the day and at night? It's between the 70s and 90s here. We are planning on running the trail from Loon to Tahoe, camping at the springs for a couple days. Are we going to freeze to death?! Its a long drive, and I just want everyone in our group to know what their in for.
expect hot days and chilly nights. Even in the heat of summer, it gets chilly after dark. Over-plan for cold is better than freezing your axle. If the heat builds up, might be a chance of a t-storm/rain. quality sweaters, (boots, gloves,knit hat) water proof shell and some tarps are always good insurance.
 
#151 ·
So, Rubithon? I remember '09 or 10 that there was so much snow that there would be no support up Cadillac. Well, we did it and there was deep snow, after observation. Keep in mind this was during the normal date in mid June.

This year has definitely had more water. I'm just generally curious about the water crossings, trees down, and what to expect. Looks like people have made it through already, with carnage.

Looking forward to the trail reports.
 
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