Steve,
I have had too many perfect forecasts walking out the door that were not so perfect when I got to the Sierra, very few the other way. I spent 4 days in rain when only rain in the forecast was the evening before we entered.
For the most part we are answering the questions of hiking or Sierra neophytes, not experienced folks. I tailor my answers that way. So, if they carry a few extra pounds of this or that, it better than carrying too few and they start living in interesting times.
