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Got caught in a freak hailstorm on the Pacific Crest Trail near Tahoe
I was about 12 miles past Echo Lake on a 5 day solo hike when the sky went from blue to dark gray in like 20 minutes. No shelter nearby, just open granite and sparse pines. The hail started coming down hard, pea sized at first then bigger, and I had zero cover. I threw my pack over my head and ran for a cluster of trees, but the branches were too thin to block anything. Ended up crouching under my tarp for 45 minutes while it pounded my shoulders and legs. My sleeping bag got soaked through a gap in my pack cover, and I had to stop early to dry everything out at a camp spot. Has anyone else had a weather situation blow up that fast on a well known section of trail?
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hayden1441mo ago
Wait 45 minutes of that on granite with just a tarp? Dude thats brutal. Sierras really do not mess around with those afternoon pop ups.
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the_holly1mo ago
My tarp kept trying to become a parachute.
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wesley3851mo ago
Crouched there thinking my tarp was about to launch me into the next county like some kind of miserable kite. Granite and hail, name a more iconic duo. Honestly felt like the sky was personally targeting me, like I owed it money or something. My pack cover betrayed me too, classic move. Glad I wasn't the only one getting pummeled up there, misery loves company I guess.
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