Drove up to Bunny Flats on Mt. Shasta yesterday at around 7000 feet altitude

Yesterday a friend and I drove up to see how the snow was coming as the previous day I had driven up with friends and they had skied to Lower Sand Flats road on metal edged Mountaineering skis from Bunny flats over the hills and roads through Sand Flats and out lower sand flats road.

One the way up to Bunny Flats we saw a Subaru Forrester that likely had tried to come down the road  a little too fast or had tried to apply brakes at all or something and had slid off the road and almost had gone down a cliff at the edge of the road. Seeing this made us more cautious. Then while we were at Bunny Flats just walking on pavement covered with snow both I slipped to one knee and my friend slipped and fell completely while walking there so I knew why the Forrester had slipped off the road. I decided after we both slipped like that to drive down at about only 10 to 15 miles per hour so we wouldn't slide too under these conditions on the roads which hadn't been plowed or rocked just then.

So, if yesterday is any indication of the consistency of snow it makes perfect sense that a trailer jack knifed in the type of snow falling right now on Interstate 5.

If you are driving in these types of conditions with an all wheel drive or 4 wheel drive you don't ever want to use your brakes to slow down in this kind of snow. Only use your transmission by down shifting to slow down or to slowly come to a stop. Your brakes are only going to make your car go out of control in conditions like this. If you are under 5 miles per hour often if you are careful your brakes might be useful only if you are coming to a complete stop.

Obviously, I'm talking about going downhill above. You don't need brakes going up hill because all you have to do is let your foot off the throttle to slow down or stop. When the vehicle stops then put the brakes on to hold it in place.