EISPIRATEN

Has anyone been up Icehouse Canyon lately? Was thinking about checking out Timber Peak and/or neighbors this weekend.

Is there any snow/ice on trail?

Thanks!

There's going to be some ice up there. Bring your ice axe and crampons and know how to use them. Already one death in that area this year due to a slip in icy terrain. Others have been injured. I've been reading about multiple SAR missions because people underestimated how icy the conds would be up top with the beautiful weather down below.

It's getting close, though, to the point when it will be a hike again instead of a more technical outing. Keep an eye on the postings herein.

Thanx hikin jim

Now is that just above the saddle, or all the way up?

Brandy:

Things are changing (melting) so fast that all I can give you is a semi-educated guess.

That being said, based on my being up there a few weeks ago and the reports that I'm reading about snow levels and conditions elsewhere (check out the frequent posts about the Baldy Bowl), I'd say that you probably could get all the way up to the saddle with out much trouble -- but keep your brain on just in case. The section from the jct with the Chapman Trail to the Saddle is pretty shady, which could have some patches.

As you work your way N on the 3 T's trail, there are some shady spots. I'd give you "better than average" to be able to summit Timber, which is only ~8300 feet, but I'm pretty sure you'd hit at least some white stuff. One shady, icy chute is enough to make it dangerous. You'd just have to see.

Like I say, I think we're getting close to the time that it'll be just a basic spring hike, but I'd still excercise caution for now. If you're mentally prepared to bail if you need to but make it, you'll feel a great sense of accomplishment. If you're bound and determined to make the top and you have to turn back, you'll be disappointed. Avoiding "get-there-itis" is really important. If you really want to summit, bring your axe and crampons.

If you want to visit some of the neighbors: Big Horn, Ontario, Cucamonga, Telegraph, etc, you will be getting on some shady, N facing slopes. I'd really expect that there will be some bad sections; be really careful. I personally would want to bring axe and crampons.

HJ

Brain on and gear in the car. Thx HJ!

Cool. Post a TR when you get back and let everyone know how it went.

Did not hike Ice House but got a birds eye view from the Bear Flats Trail. Looked like in the white stuff started about 700 ft from Saddle and was only consistent on North Facing slopes. IHC is traveled well so I would guess you could get to the saddle and Timber OK - - - - I'd be less confident on the Kelly Camp/Ontario/Cucamonga Side. The most exposed sections are between Timber and Telegraph. But it is very warm and no snow in the forecast so perhaps Spring has Sprung.

D

Went up through rIcehouse on Saturday to do 3Ts. Snow starts partway up the switchbacks up to the saddle, and farther up streaks of icy hard pack chop the trail up so much it's unusable. Everyone we met there resorted to just tearing off-trail straight up the mountain - something Dustin and I felt so shitty about doing since the soil was so soft that we donned crampons and just attempted to follow the snow up.

Yeah, we gave up on that 3T shiz right at the saddle since it only gets icier from there and 1 of our party didn't have crampons - also had to help a couple underequipped people get down some of the icy parts. One girl was pretty cute, but she had a FOB accent, which is a dealbreaker for me but has the opposite effect on Dustin.

Then we glissaded, but without the pesky controlling-your-speed-with-an-ice-axe part.

Nice one, Bert.

Hiked up IC to Timber Peak on Sunday. Trail was mostly clear up to about 3/4 mile from the saddle. There was some accumulation from there to the saddle, but usually easy to walk around it or over it (usually 10-40' across in patches) with care. From the saddle to the ".25 mile to the peak" sign the trail is perfectly clear. For the last .25 miles, there is much snow, but we made it to the top sans gear. Donned crampons on the way back down, but mostly for convenience.

Incidentally, the Cucamonga trail is covered in very thick snow from the saddle.

Beautiful hike in crisp cool air all day. Foggy, some wind (mostly at the saddle and peak), a few snowflakes here and there but not sticking.

Lovely day hike!

Cool. Thanks for the TR.

brandyb wrote:Hiked up IC to Timber Peak on Sunday. Trail was mostly clear up to about 3/4 mile from the saddle. There was some accumulation from there to the saddle, but usually easy to walk around it or over it (usually 10-40' across in patches) with care. From the saddle to the ".25 mile to the peak" sign the trail is perfectly clear. For the last .25 miles, there is much snow, but we made it to the top sans gear. Donned crampons on the way back down, but mostly for convenience.

Incidentally, the Cucamonga trail is covered in very thick snow from the saddle.

Beautiful hike in crisp cool air all day. Foggy, some wind (mostly at the saddle and peak), a few snowflakes here and there but not sticking.

Lovely day hike!

Evidence.

Thanks for your report and welcome to the forum Brandy.

Followed in Brandy's footsteps yesterday ascending to Timber Mountain via Ice House and descending via Chapman. Brandy's report on conditions is spot on. The Chapman trail is completely dry with the exception of a few, short but steep shaded slopes that are still snow covered and a bit sketchy without poles and/or studs. The trails to Cucamonga and Ontario at the saddle are still snow bound. The saddle was crowded; the top of Timber was even more crowded. I'd post a few pics if I knew how.

Hello. I was wondering if anyone had been up in Icehouse lately. As far as the trail goes, is it pretty icey/snowy/or accesible WITHOUT crampons or snowshoes? Planning to make an attempt up there this weekend, so if anyone could get back to this that'd be awesome.
Thanks, Kevin.

If anyone is just curious or planning on going up Icehouse, the saddle is easily accessible due to the fact that there isn't much snow. BUT if you plan on doing Etiwanda, Cucamonga, Big Horn, Kelly's Camp, and/or Ontario, I recommend using crampons because there's still a whole buncha snow left on those north facing slopes..

Take it easy,
Kevin

Kevin: Thanks for the report on conditions.

No problem!

This story from http://mtwhitneyhiking.blogspot.com/

Sunday, November 15, 2009
Kudos To Our Forest Service Volunteers

As I traveled up Icehouse Canyon yesterday I noticed the spray painted rocks and trees were no more...we at least for a while.

On the way down, I spoke with a couple of Forest Service volunteers who told me what I saw took them 3 weeks to accomplish using a wire brush on cordless drill...3 charged batteries per trip.

Thanks again, for cleaning up our canyon.

Many thanks to the volunteers!!

now all we need is a cougarmagic cam to catch these animals in the act if it happens again

thats cool.
Damn those hooligans

Nice work Forest Service Volunteers

Graffiti "Knuckleheads" beware

RichardK wrote:Many thanks to the volunteers!!

Thanks seem inadequate at best, I am in their debt and am in awe of their proficiency and dedication

Matt

Anyone been up Icehouse lately? Wondering where the snow/icy stuff starts. Is the trail frozen stuff free up to the wilderness boundary?

HJ

Hikin_Jim wrote:Anyone been up Icehouse lately? Wondering where the snow/icy stuff starts. Is the trail frozen stuff free up to the wilderness boundary?

HJ

Jim we were up on a group hike last Sunday, there's only one spot from parking lot to the boundry sign with snow/ice on it. From the sign to the saddle there's 8 or 10 spots, mostly in the upper canyon area where the snow is compacted to the point of being "ice", but 95% of it has an extensive amount of dirt, sand, dead fall (twigs etc....) from all the hikers walking across it that micro spikes work just fine, the other 5% just needs to be done with care (like the turns for the switchbacks in the shade at the upper end of the canyon). As a group we all decided to put our crampons on at the saddle before heading over to do Ontario, but the two folks that were heading back down right then decided to put there's on as well becuase heading downhill on those shady spots always presents the added chance of slipping heading downhill at a higher rate of speed.

Hope this helps, glad to see you posting again, hope the family and the baby are doing great.
Lilbitmo

Does anyone know how clear the trails are past (or up to) Icehouse Saddle? Is it possible to hike either Cucamonga or Telegraph Peak yet without crampons?

There's snow for a few hundred feet below the Saddle, but crampons not really needed. Crampons would be useful on the way to Cucamonga Peak, since part of that route is north-facing, but probably not to Telegraph Peak.

Some pics from this weekend:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/simonov/se ... 929331836/

Thank you very much for the info.

There are just a few patches of easy to cross snow before you get to Icehouse Saddle, but there's lots of snow still on Cucamonga Peak.

That trail is heavily traveled and really does reflect it. I saw a diaper and a roll of toilet paper on the trail today, and a lot of people cutting switchbacks in areas where the snow is melted out. Those spray paint markers on the rocks and trees are really sad too. I took the Chapman Trail down to avoid the traffic on the main trail and that was really nice.

Some pictures from today (The snow is melting off Baldy fast):

http://kathywing.smugmug.com/California ... 9274_5ZQ3j

This was last week, top of the Chapman Trail. My poor wife was a bit worried.