[MCR] Little Crowfoot Peak - Dec. 6th, 2012

Chris Gooliaff, Marc Ledwidge and myself skiied Little Crowfoot peak today.  We found a supportive snowpack and generally good skiing.

Snow/ Travel Conditions: 10-20 cm ski penetration made for good ski quality with some wind effect in the alpine creating a denser slab layer, but still skiied well.  There was 130-180 cms of snow on the Ferris glacier (small glacier near the summit of Little Crowfoot).  The canyon leading in to Bow hut is in good early season shape, but you need to take your skis off for one small rock step on the way up (this can be avoided on the way down).  We skiied around Bow Lake as the ice was slushy in spots and still looked a little thin to cross.

Avalanche Conditions: We noticed a few avalanches that had occurred in the past few days.  A size 2 on the NE aspect of Vulture peak, and a size 3 on the Bow headwall (likely serac triggered) had run in the last 3-4 days.  Also, we noticed a cross loaded gully on the N aspect of Crowfoot peak at treeline had released within the last 2 days.  See photo here: http://ow.ly/fTp1R .   The upper snowpack felt quite well settled with no obvious layers noted from pole probing and ski cutting.  We didn't dig down for the November 6th crust, but stuck to supported, smaller terrain features.

Weather: Overcast and light snow with occasional breaks, light winds and temps in the -10 to -15 range.  

Overall,  way less wind effect than in this area at this time last year.  Good skiing on a nice supportive snowpack for the Rockies in December!

Ian Jackson
ACMG Aspirant Guide
Visitor Safety Technician
Banff, Yoho, Kootenay National Parks
www.parksmountainsafety.ca
www.parcsecuritemontagne.ca