harperg76•28d agoMost Upvoted

Got caught in a freak hailstorm over Muir Pass last August

I was coming down from the summit around 2 PM when the sky just turned purple and golf ball sized ice started pounding us with no cover for miles. Stuffed my sleeping bag inside my pack liner and used my tent fly as a shield while I scrambled behind a boulder for 45 minutes until it passed. Anyone else ever hit a weather event that wasn't in any forecast?

3 comments

3 Comments

blair_webb28d ago

Not sure I'd call it a freak thing. August in the Sierra means afternoon storms are basically the norm, and Muir Pass is wide open. Sounds like you did the right thing with the gear, though.

grant.felix28d ago

Right there with you, @dianaanderson. Those open passes are no joke.

dianaanderson28d ago

Completely agree with you @blair_webb. I got caught in one of those "normal" August storms near Muir Pass back in 2019 and it was no joke. Rain started at 4 PM sharp, turned to pea-sized hail, then lightning EVERYWHERE across that open bowl. I was scrambling to find ANY cover, ended up hunkering under a big rock shelf for two hours. That place is DEFINITELY not where you want to be when the sky opens up.