End of June/Early July Trip Ideas

End of June is a little early for most high mountain destinations in the West – doable, but you’ll have snow going over passes and at higher elevations near or above treeline. By early July, more options open up with noticeably less snow than June, depending on the year – Sierras, Rocky’s (CO, WY and MT), Sawtooths, Cascades, Olympics…

I’d look for areas that are below normal seasonal snow pack for a long trip in the Western Mountains starting in June. For example, the site linked below shows lower than average snow water equivalent values for the Pacific NW:

https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/wcc/home/quicklinks/imap/!ut/p/z1/pZExb4MwEIV_SwfG-o6EErebw5CkRErbpAm5JTKUAlIwCDux-u9LxZqaSr3Bks_fe_esA4IESMlrVUhTNUqe-_uRwtNqwsWSbzFeREGA4jGa7dbbGcZvD3BwArsQqH_mPAr8TYBrjFHga8Tjfbjc-5uXyYh-jn_T4y8lBv1ofscA-s__e4Dc8Q5AYwg5M8zHgJ8dOIGpD89AxblJh4ULlU55AdTln3mXd-zS9e3SmFY_eeihtZbZLGOqyzS76A_JiubqoVaNHc5TLVtWmvqmWdloA8lND2jr974SrFb3lH7Zu282F_6j/dz/d5/L2dBISEvZ0FBIS9nQSEh/#version=104&elements=R&networks=!&states=!&basins=!&hucs=&minElevation=&maxElevation=&elementSelectType=all&activeOnly=true&activeForecastPointsOnly=false&hucLabels=false&hucIdLabels=false&hucParameterLabels=false&stationLabels=&overlays=&hucOverlays=&basinOpacity=100&basinNoDataOpacity=100&basemapOpacity=100&maskOpacity=0&mode=data&openSections=dataElement,parameter,date,basin,elements,location,networks&controlsOpen=true&popup=&popupMulti=&base=esriNgwm&displayType=basin&basinType=6&dataElement=WTEQ&depth=-8&parameter=PCTMED&frequency=DAILY&duration=I&customDuration=1&dayPart=E&year=2019&month=5&day=14&monthPart=E&forecastPubMonth=5&forecastPubDay=1&forecastExceedance=50&seqColor=1&divColor=3&scaleType=D&scaleMin=&scaleMax=&referencePeriodType=POR&referenceBegin=1981&referenceEnd=2010&minimumYears=20&hucAssociations=true&lat=44.723&lon=-113.027&zoom=6.0

Forget about the Sierra in June this year.  There was already a record snowpack this year, before a forecasted 1-2′ dump beginning yesteray.  Current snow level in the North Cascades is around 4,000′ and receding, but that still means difficult going in early-mid June.  Also, it is extremely difficult to get permits up here these days, due to the high number of people applying for a limited number.  It might be worth checking further south, but I have little advice to offer there.

The Pasayten Wilderness on the Eastern side of the North Cascades is usually dryer and starts opening up for backpacking in June most years and this year there’s less snow than usual.