While I have not hiked in October, I have hiked in early season conditions. In 2015, we had a very low snow year leaving little snowpack by mid May and a clear path for northbound PCTers. But a few late season storms left unconsolidated snow making travel difficult and similar to what I¡¯d expect the first snows of the fall would be like. The new snow made my Whitney summit attempt difficult and had to abort it. And I judged Forester Pass too dangerous to cross and bailed out over what turned out to be a hazardous descent over Shepherd Pass. I took a week off before resuming my hike. I definitely agree that great caution should be used hiking at times of the year when new snow could obscure the trail. I was not prepared for the conditions, as would be the case for most summer season hikers with lightweight gear.?
ravi_jmt2013