It was a beautiful day for a helicopter resupply. We received all of our supplies and flew out dirty laundry. The day was phenomenal. It was a great day to explore the mountain. The high yesterday was 55 with a low of 34. The snow coverage is decreasing. We are now down to 5".
The crew loading laundry into the helicopter.
I have been asked a couple of questions that I would like to address:
Q: What are the trail conditions?
A: A couple of the crew have scouted out some of the trails and reported back on the conditions.
Rainbow Falls- the snow is pretty well melted all the way to the falls.
Bullhead- the last 1 1/2 still has plenty of snow and ice. You will need crampons for this last section.
Trillium Gap- the trail is still closed.
Boulevard- This trail has had a little foot traffic on it. There is still quite a bit of snow coverage. The area that is the biggest concern is toward the top of the mountain around the cliffs. These cliffs are north facing and do not see sunlight. They are very icy and extremely dangerous. The hikers that have reported back are experienced hikers and they said they were nervous hiking around these cliffs.
Alum Cave Bluffs- This trail is clearing up nicely. The areas up top that had a lot of ice, are all melting.
Q: What is the accumulated snow fall for the winter?
A: Our winter caretaker has not added his totals, but we have received reports from other sources.
The National Weather Service reported 168" for the winter. ( We are not sure what months are included).
The Knoxville New Sentinel reported 112" from December thru February.
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