[MCR] Cirque Peak, Rockies, April 30,2015

Skied a scenic tour from Num-Ti-Jah Lodge over Helen Ridge, up Cirque Peak, and down the Cirque Glacier today. 

Not much of a freeze overnight so the snow below treeline was isothermal with just a thin crust. We were breaking through the surface crust in places and the best travel was on old up tracks or down tracks. At treeline and above there was a good supportive crust with 5-10cm of fresh snow which made for easy travel and good spring skiing.  

Moderate SW winds were creating a few thin wind slabs in the alpine that were reactive to ski cutting, but in general the snow pack up high was pretty solid until the crust began to break down on solar aspects by mid-day. We saw a few recent cornice failures that triggered the basal facets in the impact zones, some recent wet sluffs up to size 1.5 on solar aspects that occasionally went down to the basal facets, and a few small loose dry sluffs from the wind loading today.

Fun spring skiing up high if you don't mind a bit of work to get there.

--

Conrad Janzen

ACMG / IFMGA Mountain Guide

Banff Mountain Guides

[MCR] ACMG Mountain Conditions Report Summary for the Rockies and Columbia Mountains issued April 30th, 2015

ACMG Mountain Conditions Report Summary for the Rockies and Columbia Mountains issued April 30th, 2015 Not really much change in the past week. The snow line continues to slowly migrate up hill and the past couple of days saw some limited rain most places and some scattered snow fall in the interior. Alpine conditions, avalanche hazard, cornice falls, glacier travel etc are still, most importantly, dependent on temperatures and overnight freezes. Snow and ice routes and Skiing are still potentially good on the big icefields and around treeline along the divides of the Rockies and Columbia Mountains. As a gross generalization, as you get farther away from the big icefields, the green line is well up into the treeline. Away from the alpine, ice climbing is mostly gone. Some chunks of water ice were still hanging in yesterday in Field but none of them looked even remotely like a good idea to climb. Places like the Ghost River, Yamnuska, Victor Lake wall etc would be in great climbing shape if they get enough sun to dry out. North faces like Ha Ling and alpine venues like Mt Louis, Rogers Pass, Bugaboos etc will still have snow issues on route or hanging above the routes for awhile yet. The dry ranges should be in pretty good scrambling shape but some snow and ice may still be lurking in the shade and the ticks will be out in force. Larry Stanier ACMG Mountain Guide
These observations and opinions are those of the person who submitted them. The ACMG and its members take no responsibility for errors, omissions, or lapses in continuity. Conditions differ greatly over time and space due to the variable nature of mountain weather and terrain. Application of this information provides no guarantee of increased safety. Do not use the Mountain Conditions Report as the sole factor in planning trips or making decisions in the field. Please check out http://acmg.ca/mcr for more information.

[MCR] Jasper Skiing

Good spring ski conditions have been found in the Jasper area recently with supportive travel conditions on solar aspects in the morning and powder on alpine north aspects.

A party that travelled up the Athabasca glacier and came out the Saskatchewan glacier two weeks ago reported good travel conditions and only had to carry their ski's a few short distances to get back to the Big Bend parking lot.

More snow is forecast this week..........the winter season continues it would appear.

The web cam at the Icefields centre is proving a useful resource.

http://www.brewster.ca/rocky-mountains/destinations/columbia-icefield/activities/columbia-icefield-glacier-adventure/webcam/#/0

Cheers,

Steve Blagbrough.

ACMG.

Sent from my iPhone

[MCR] Rockies Mt Wilson. April 27th, 2015

Did the traverse of Mt Wilson yesterday. Great conditions, where there is snow. We also found some useful trail info that I have included below

From 600 down the David Thompson highway we walked into a clearing/ old gravel pit. Walked to its far NW corner and found a thin but decent trail. Just when you feel like you are getting close to the first cliff bands-go left into the slide path you are looking for. Currently good snow cover from this point on and it was stone hard yesterday morning.

Good travel on the glacier to the summit. Summit cornices are HUGE. One is currently more like a serac than a cornice. Great skiing on the glacier and the meadows below but it would suck with anything but fast snow.

You can't ski in the Rampart creek bed currently so it is pretty overgrown in places along the sides. You lose the snow around the large cliff which the guidebooks mention. Do not try to descend through the bush skiers left of the creek if there is no snow. It is alder hell. Enough said:) Mostly walking from there down and it is rugged with skis on your back. Lots of ski limbo.

Finally, there is a trail ending/starting right above Rampart Creek Hostel. On ascent, follow a slight ridge right beside the creek and when you hit the grey limestone there should be a short length of chain. You can climb just right of the chain(easier) but this is the place to find the start of the trail and it is vague but continuous quite far up the drainage.

Fantastic trip but the "green line" is getting pretty high.

Larry Stanier
ACMG Mountain Guide
_______________________________________________
These observations and opinions are those of the person who submitted them. The ACMG and its members take no responsibility for errors, omissions, or lapses in continuity. Conditions differ greatly over time and space due to the variable nature of mountain weather and terrain. Application of this information provides no guarantee of increased safety. Do not use the Mountain Conditions Report as the sole factor in planning trips or making decisions in the field.
See http://acmg.ca/mcr for more information.
See http://informalex.org/subscribe.shtml#unsubscribe to remove your name from this list.

[MCR] Rogers Pass Connaught Ck. Apr.27-2015

Skied some of the North facing terrain in Connaught Ck today (Video Pk., Pk. 8812, & Ursus Major - exiting via Bruins Pass/bowl) and was treated to a smorgasbord of snow conditions -dry Powder, moist Powder, and silky corn snow, (depending on elevation, aspect and time of day) - all of which skied amazingly well!

 

Today's increase in Freezing levels definitely had some impact on the higher elevation North powder not sure how fluffy things will be tomorrow - but if we get a good overnight freeze there could be some good corn to be had.

 

The crust was totally supportive and I actually bootpacked this morning once I was above 2000m., as it was easier that sidehilling on the frozen crust - at the end of the day in the valley bottom the crust was barely holding - okay I was pretty late ;-) - and the snow a bit sticky - but no problem skiing all the way to the highway.

 

As my Great, Great, Great, Great Grandpappy always said " Timing is Everything - next to Location, Location, Location -which is of course all about TIMING!" , and that is what spring skiing is all about.

 

Cheers,

Scott Davis

ACMG/IFMGA Mountain Guide

 

 

[MCR] Summer Mountain Wether Forecast

Avalanche Canada is pleased to announce that the Avalanche Canada Mountain Weather Forecast will continue for the summer. The forecast will change with the seasons: in spring it will focus on weather factors related to runoff and flooding while the summer forecast will concentrate on lighting and high impact precipitation events, with an emphasis on convective activity.

 

Summer recreationists, such as hikers, ATV riders, and mountaineers will find this forecast useful for trip planning. Emergency planners and natural hazard risk managers may also find the forecast helpful.

 

You can find the ACMWF at www.avalanche.ca/weather.

 

Karl Klassen – Manager, Public Avalanche Warning Service

Avalanche Canada, kklassen@avalanche.ca 250.814.8981

 

[MCR] Northern Selkirks, April 18-25

Hi all,

I just finished guiding a week long ski mountaineering trip across the Adamants & Sir Sandford range. We accessed the area by helicopter from Golden starting near the headwaters of Austerity creek. We traveled between 1800m and 3150m from Mount Sir Williams to Moberly pass via Fairy Meadows, Great Cairn and the Goldstream névé areas. We made several ascents including; Unicorn peak, Pioneer Peak, The Footstool, Alpina Dome, Citadel Mountain as well as a few unnamed peaks in the Goldstream Névé area. Weather, traveling conditions and snowpack were all very seasonal. We were greeted by clear skies on the first four days and had mixed weather with classic convective snow showers on the remainder of the week. Freezing levels were between 2500m & 3000m during the day lowering to below 2000m most nights. Travel was on supportive melt freeze crust in early AM changing to moist snow on all solar aspects by mid day. We took advantage of the firm morning conditions to increase safety. All glaciers encountered were passable and well covered. Some crevasse bridges were starting to sag but were still strong particularly in the AM.

The snowpack was mostly stable in the morning however, it quickly deteriorated with daytime warming & solar radiations in the PM. Isothermal snow was observed below 2000m on southerly aspects. The area received 30-40 cm of new snow during the second half of the week which lead to excellent powder skiing particularly on northerly aspects. This new snow was bonding well to the previous layer. Snowpack height ranged between 200cm and 300cm at treeline elevations. The April 10th interface was down 30-60 cm, it was touchy earlier in the week showing moderate sudden shear results. We experience extensive whumpfing on this layer earlier in the week. The warm temps helped this layer bond and shear results improved throughout the week. As we left yesterday, another layer of surface hoar was forming. We saw crystals up to 7mm at mountain tops, most of which was already melting off on solar aspects. On the avalanche front, we observed a heath & radiation induced avalanche cycle on April 21st and 22nd. Numerous wet loose avalanches along with the odd deep slab avalanche up to size 3 out of steep rocky south facing terrain were observed in the afternoon those days. Of note, we saw very little activity out of north facing terrain.

With careful planning and proper timing, fine ski mountaineering can still be found in the northern Selkirks!

Cheers,

David Lussier
mountain guide
www.summitmountainguides.com

[MCR] Wapta Icefields

Just returned from a 4 day "Little Wapta Traverse" going in via Peyto Lake
and coming out via Bow Lake today.

We approached Peyto Hut by using the direct route via the canyon, which
currently requires taking off your skis a few times and one short boot pack
section. The main hazard right now is rock fall from the frozen, northern
aspect moraine slopes over head during a shorter section of the climb but
it's serious enough that I would only recommend the route on a cold day with
a reasonably early start. The regular approach via the steep moraine and the
glaciology research station looked boney and also requires carrying your
skis in some sections.

Coverage on the glaciers is generally good although probing along the
existing approach track close to Peyto Hut some of the wind-exposed
locations showed only 50cm!

Vulture Col was a bit skied out and littered with frozen debris balls for
the first bit. We used a rope belay for most of our group for the steep
entrance.

Most remarkable was the change in weather over the last four days from
distinctively spring-like on the first day (Monday April 21) to wintery
during the last 3 days. Today it was snowing all day (see image) with strong
winds from the south-west. On our last run from "Little Crowfoot" towards
Bow Lake we found up to 15cm low density snow on a supportive sun crust,
which made for good skiing. Temperatures were around -6C at 6AM the last two
mornings at the Bow Hut. Both Peyto and Bow Lake are still well frozen and
were easy to cross while temps were cool.

Enjoy the spring skiing while it last......

Cheers,

Jorg Wilz
Mountain Guide (ACMG / VDBS / IFMGA)
 
OnTop ltd.
www.ontopmountaineering.com
+1 403 678 2717 or 1-800-506-7177

[MCR] Rogers Pass Winter Permit Program

The rumour is true...early starts are now in effect.

Information Bulletin

WINTER PERMIT SYSTEM NO LONGER IN EFFECT –

FOR THE 2014/2015 WINTER SEASON

REVELSTOKE, BRITISH COLUMBIA, April 25, 2015 – The Winter Permit System is no longer in effect in Glacier National Park. The highway corridor avalanche control program has completed artillery control for the 2014/2015 season and backcountry recreationalists may now enter Winter Restricted Areas and Winter Prohibited areas with the exception of Fidelity Winter Prohibited Area without a Winter Permit.  Recreationalists are still required to display a national park pass on their vehicle.

While these Winter Restricted Areas are open, this does not render snow-covered slopes safe for winter and spring recreationists. Anyone travelling into the backcountry in winter and spring should have proper training to assess avalanche terrain and conditions, as well as the appropriate equipment and skills for self-rescue.  As well, avalanche control measures using helicopters remain a possibility until all potential avalanche hazards to the transportation corridor have subsided.  

No stopping zones on the Trans Canada Highway remain in effect as indicated by highway signs.  Recreationalists are reminded to use Parks Canada designated access routes that ensure safety near CP railway lines.

It is the responsibility of park visitors to ensure their actions are safe. Further information can be obtained at www.pc.gc.ca/glacier or by visiting the Rogers Pass Discovery Centre.  Information is also available by phoning Parks Canada in Revelstoke at (250) 837-7500, or (250) 837-MTNS for daily weather and snow conditions.


Information:

Revelstoke Office Mount Revelstoke and Glacier National Parks Field Unit Parks Canada       250-837-7500

[MCR] ACMG Mountain Conditions Report Summary for the Rockies and Columbia Mountains issued April 23rd, 2015

ACMG Mountain Conditions Report Summary for the Rockies and Columbia Mountains issued April 23rd, 2015 Spring is fully sprung for this first ACMG Mountain Conditions Summary of 2015. I think, as a gross generalization, conditions are currently about as uniform as they get across the Rockies and Columbia mountains. Snow is retreating from valley bottoms and lower mid-elevations along the east slopes of most of the ranges and creeks are opening. For skiers, this could mean some walking, wading and or "mixed" skiing down low. However, there is still some great snow travel to be had treeline and above. Ski and climbing conditions to at least 2500m all hinges on the state of the melt freeze cycle. There has recently been some great travel on skis and boots if your timing is right. Today, it sounded like lots of crust where the skies stayed grey after a cold night. Above 2700m or so, open shady slopes are fairly well settled but still have some loose snow and some good powder skiing. In parts of the Columbia mtns the melt/freeze has reportedly extended even to the high north facing terrain. For climbing in the shady alpine places, there is likely still lots of snowed-up rock, cornices, mushrooms, sloughing etc. I had to trench/swim to make headway up a shaded gully on the Fist yesterday. A wily party recently retreated due to avalanche hazard on Woolley Shoulder. Another party managed to get up "The Wild Thing" on Mt. Chepren, but it sounded like a huge effort in very snowy conditions. Anyone thinking of climbing on a big sun effected alpine feature in clear weather for awhile had better have a really good plan and stick to it. I was up high two days this week close to the Rockies Divide and on the east faces wet snow avalanches started running big and fast around 9am and kept it up till the sun left them. I would assume that the same wet slough cycle followed the sun around on the south and west faces. Cornices are still around and the only two slab avalanches I saw this week were cornice triggered. Small avalanches but big ugly cornice chunks! Glacier travel is generally pretty darn good. The notable exception would be ice with shallow snow cover in the melt phase. Lots of reports of folks skiing on the big Icefields in the Rockies and Columbias and getting great conditions. Wx doesn't look awesome anywhere for the next day or two but if it clears up again and stays a bit cool it could be really good once again up high! Word is that starting Saturday(april 25th), no permits are needed to ski in Glacier park(except Mt. Fidelity) so alpine starts are now easy(easier at least:) The road up to the Bugaboos is open to at least the turnoff by the CMH lodge and the spires are starting to dry out. Finally, lots of signs of wildlife on the move but the one that really scared me was a wood tick at almost 2500m in K-country yesterday. Yukk! Larry Stanier ACMG Mountain Guide
These observations and opinions are those of the person who submitted them. The ACMG and its members take no responsibility for errors, omissions, or lapses in continuity. Conditions differ greatly over time and space due to the variable nature of mountain weather and terrain. Application of this information provides no guarantee of increased safety. Do not use the Mountain Conditions Report as the sole factor in planning trips or making decisions in the field. Please check out http://acmg.ca/mcr for more information.

[MCR] New Columbia Icefields WEBcam

Brewster's Travel has set up a new Webcam at the Icefields Centre on Highway 93N. Nice way to check weather and conditions on Sky-Ladder. Stay tuned, I guess they intend to have a couple others in place before summer but I am not positive on the locations. 

http://www.brewster.ca/rocky-mountains/destinations/columbia-icefield/activities/columbia-icefield-glacier-adventure/webcam/#/0

[MCR] Wapta Traverse

We finished the Wapta Traverse today, starting on the Peyto Glacier approach April 17 and descending the classic route via Niles Creek this morning.

Going up Peyto Creek is quite bony right now. Although it is still a reasonable option expect to take skis on and off several times to make your way through the gravel flats and moraines.

There was between 2.5 - 3 m of snow on the icefield, which seems a bit thin to me. That said most crevasse areas look filled in, with the exception of the Balfour High Col approach where there are lots of visible crevasses and sags.

The choke past the nunatak below the col has a large crevasse spanning most of it. It has been bypassed on the left on bridges or on the right over icefall debris.

The exit out the Sherbrooke Valley has OK coverage except for a couple of bare spots on the trail as it approaches valley bottom.

We didn't observe any recent avalanche activity. Travel was fast with low ski penetration on the north aspects and either moist surface snow or hard crusts on south aspects, depending on the time of day.

Overall very good conditions in this zone. April in the Rockies is performing again.

Mark Klassen

ACMG-IFMGA Mountain Guide

Banff-Lake Louise, Canada

Japan Powder 2016 - Sail & Ski Iceland 2016: Alpinism | » Ski Safaris

[MCR] Rockies-White Pyramid April 20th, 2015.

Fine day skiing(mostly) on White Pyramid. Good conditions but it is getting skinny down low.

We walked a bit in the first hour and on the summit ridge and that will be the only option soon down low. River is open and is a good wakeup. Great conditions today with a good overnight freeze. Wet slides starting running on the east faces around 9:30 and were continuous till around 2pm.

Good uphill travel and quite good ski quality on the descent right to treeline. Things may change with the grey forecast but till then it is a winner.

Larry Stanier
ACMG Mountain Guide


_______________________________________________
These observations and opinions are those of the person who submitted them. The ACMG and its members take no responsibility for errors, omissions, or lapses in continuity. Conditions differ greatly over time and space due to the variable nature of mountain weather and terrain. Application of this information provides no guarantee of increased safety. Do not use the Mountain Conditions Report as the sole factor in planning trips or making decisions in the field.
See http://acmg.ca/mcr for more information.
See http://informalex.org/subscribe.shtml#unsubscribe to remove your name from this list.

[MCR] Ski Guide Exam Observations - Lake Louise April 10-18

Observations from the recent CMSG Ski Guide Exam, April 10-18, in the Lake Louise area.

Areas travelled include: Cirque Pk, Sub-Observation Pk, Mt Hector, Cathedral Pk, Surprise Pass, Upper Victoria Glacier, Lake Louise Backcountry, White Pyramid, Crowfoot Pk.

The week started with winter conditions: cold temperatures, new snow daily, and moderate to strong westerly winds.  40cm of new snow fell during the period of April 10^th-14^th. On the 15^th, more spring-like weather began with strong, daily temperature cycles and rising freezing levels. During this time, the sun began to influence the snow on solar aspects.  That said, North facing alpine elevations still harbour dry snow and winter-like conditions.  

Initial concerns in the snowpack were for basal weaknesses and isolated wind slabs in lee features. This changed with the new 40cms of storm snow  and strong winds, depositing up to 80cm's in lee features. This snow was overlying crusts on solar aspects  and facets on north aspects. Warm temperatures and high winds pressed and settled the new snow the 15th and 16th with the last day seeing a return to normal spring conditions and a melt/ freeze cycle. 

The week started with moderate avalanche hazard but avalanche activity spiked with the new snow and winds producing deep slabs up to size 3. The warming on the 15th with high winds also produced numerous avalanches up to size 3 on solar and wind loaded aspects.  By week's end, activity had subsided with a few solar avalanches in steep wind loaded terrain.

Matt Peter MG

Craig McGee MG

CMSG Ski Guide Candidates

[MCR] Sunshine Rock Access Update, Banff National Park, April 16, 2015

Several inquiries have been made regarding access to climbing at Sunshine Rock in Banff National Park during the construction on the Brewster Creek/Healy Creek trail this spring. At this point Sunshine Rock and the parking at the Brewster Creek/Healy Creek trailhead remains open with no anticipated closures.

Climbers are asked to park in a way that does not impeded access to any of the construction equipment or material present at the parking lot, and to access the crag without disturbing any of the equipment or material present near the crag.

Blasting for the trail construction was completed this winter at the SW corner of the crag. Subsequent rock scaling for the trail construction was completed this spring, however climbers may still encounter loose rock in this area especially in the "Roadside Left" section of the crag. Any fixed protection on nearby climbs should also be checked for integrity before committing to climbing on these routes.

When climbing please be aware that construction equipment may be moving back and forth on the trail at the base of the crag so please keep you ropes and personal gear organized and off to the side of the trail. By avoiding any conflicts with the various user groups we hope to keep access to the crag open all spring and summer.

--

Conrad Janzen

Visitor Safety

Banff, Yoho and Kootenay National Parks

[MCR] Selkirks

Hi all

Up at Selkirk Lodge right now and just a bit of a heads as today was the first splitter day with temps forecast to rise over the next few.

Since Friday night there has been 50-70cms of new snow at Selkirk Lodge with lots of wind. Yesterday the storm ended and it was cold and clear and today we got to venture out a bit further a field. The word on the streets before we flew in was that a facet layer and surface hoar layer was buried, and especially well preserved on shady aspects above 2000m. During the storm while skiing treeline and below elevations we were able to trigger numerous 1 to 1.5 slabs on this layer and even through today we have been getting large whoompfs. The clearing showed a fair bit of avalanche activity from the storm cycle, but with the amount of new snow and wind it is really hard to tell how much avalanche activity may have occurred. As a result of our observations we have tended to completely avoid avalanche terrain. Today a test pit at 2400m N aspect showed well preserved surface hoar to 10mm down 55cms produced Moderate Sudden Planar compression test results. Another positive affirmation of our conservative terrain choices.

Stay safe and enjoy the latest return to winter!

Evan Stevens

Mountain Guide

http://www.vmt.ca

[MCR] Rockies - Ski Conditions

A TRU Canadian Mountain and Ski Guide Program Ski Guide Exam spent a week of ski touring in the Rockies from April 4-10 in Lake Louise, Kootenay Parkway, Icefields Parkway and Kananaskis areas. We experienced a variety of weather over the week with significant snow fall averaging 30cm in the alpine on April 5^th. New snow fell with little wind affect and bonded well to old surfaces. During the week we had cold nights and daytime warming on solar aspects with freezing levels going up to 2100m.

Avalanche activity was limited to point releases up to size 1,5 (loose dry and loose wet). Cornice failures produced a variety of results up to size 3 (older) from deep slab releases on steep North facing aspects. Sluffing observed on steep Northerly aspects.

Recent storm snow overlies a variety of surfaces. There is a well settled mid pack on all aspects sitting over weak snow above the ground (basal facets). On Southerly aspects multiple crust layers are present.

Good travel conditions on glacier with snow depth varying from 150-350cm. Warm conditions at lower elevations have caused wet snow conditions making travel challenging later in the day. Great ski quality was found on North aspects. Good trip planning is essential with early starts due to day time warming. Bring ski crampons.

Today in Lake Louise it is snowing and more new snow is expected.

The Ski Guide Exam Crew &

Marc Piché - Mountain Guide

Todd Craig - Mountain Guide

[MCR] Rockies Ski Touring: Tent Ridge - Commonwealth Creek

Hi Everyone:
Nobody else around today while ski touring at Tent Ridge. A typical April
day in the Rockies' Front Range with some sun, fast moving clouds with
flurries and strong, gusty south-westerly winds at ridge line. We skied the
NE aspect of the regular Tent Ridge Bowl as well as the N aspect below the
saddle leading towards Tryst Lake. There are about 10 - 20cm of
recrystallized snow over a carrying crust that caps a largely recrystallized
snowpack with crusts interspersed. Skiing quality was still quite good on
northerly aspects in spite of wind effect from downflowing winds. Solar
aspects only softened up in the lower elevations today.

Off note was evidence of a recent avalanche that we observed in the distance
on the northern aspect below the saddle between Commonwealth Peak and the
Shark's Tooth (see attached photo) on the regular ski line. Looks like a
healthy size 2 or 2.5 with impressive propagation - possibly cornice
triggered? Good reminder that in spite of the spring conditions we are
dealing with a pretty complex snowpack and especially large triggers can
still cause big avalanches.

Have a great weekend!

Jorg Wilz
Mountain Guide (ACMG / VDBS / IFMGA)
 
OnTop ltd.
www.ontopmountaineering.com
+1 403 678 2717 or 1-800-506-7177

[MCR] Rockies - Kananaskis - Yamnuska

Great spring conditions today on Yamnuska. We climbed Gollum Grooves on the east end.

The hiking trail is almost free of snow and ice up to the shoulder. It is muddy in places. Beyond, trail spikes and hiking poles helped a lot. The traverse trail has plenty of drifted snow and ice, but it was melting fast today.

The face climbing is dry and warm in the sun. Snow is still lurking at the backs of the chimneys.

Brent Peters
Alpine Guide
PeakStratagem.com

[MCR] Rockies

Sent from my iPhone
_______________________________________________
These observations and opinions are those of the person who submitted them. The ACMG and its members take no responsibility for errors, omissions, or lapses in continuity. Conditions differ greatly over time and space due to the variable nature of mountain weather and terrain. Application of this information provides no guarantee of increased safety. Do not use the Mountain Conditions Report as the sole factor in planning trips or making decisions in the field.
See http://acmg.ca/mcr for more information.
See http://informalex.org/subscribe.shtml#unsubscribe to remove your name from this list.

[MCR] Rockies - Mt Hector - April 9th

We climbed and skied Mt Hector on April 9th as well as 6 other groups for a total of 22 people on the mountain and there was two more cars in the parking lot this morning (April 10th). There was at least 10 people prior to our ascent since the last snow fall. That would make approximately close to 40 tracks on the mountain since the snowfall of April 4-5th. It is a big mountains but tracks are pushing very close if not directly over to large crevasses.

Approach

The creek was well filled in and travelled fast until the canyon.

Some groups chose to ski and bootpack the canyon, some used boot crampons. There are spots where these is only 20cm of snow over running water and there are visible holes. 

Travel was possible but thin on skis up to the top of the steep slopes before the glacier.

The cornices on the North West ridge of Hector are still hanging present and no chunks have fallen in the last week.

There is a rough average of 170cm of snow on the glacier with areas of 3m+ and spots of 60cms over the ice.

I have attached photos looking up and down the glacier. 

Descent

Ski quality was excellent with 20-30cm of powder snow from the summit ridge to the end of the glacier and then mix of powder and corn skiing to the canyon. 

Lots of freshly covered rocks in steep slopes below the glacier.

The canyon was managed in a variety of ways, some sideslipped it, some down climbed but for the adventurous it is still possible to ski it.

The creek exit was supportive to the road and travelled well.

Weather

Very light westerly winds and below freezing temperatures to 2200m.

Todays gusting Strong westerly winds will have changed the snow quality in exposed areas.

Pictures:

Looking up the North Glacier

Looking down the North Glacier

Philippe Gautier

ACMG Ski Guide

Currently in Alberta

phil@nevexp.com

[MCR] Glacier and Mt. Revelstoke Park conditions

Hey Gang,

 

I have been skiing in both Glacier and Mt. Revelstoke parks over this last week - conditions are as stated in previous MCR's - amazing spring conditions (okay more like winter than this winter was)!.

 

The only thing I wanted to add, is that the great ski conditions, were also great Surface Hoar growing conditions.

 

The light winds and clear skies have allowed for significant surface hoar (5-10mm.) formation on higher elevation N. Aspects - this is now covered by last night's snowfall. The outlook is for a bit of snow over the next while which may lead to a significant enough load for this interface to become reactive to skiers.

 

This last week allowed for some pretty aggressive ski lines, I know when I get back out I will be choosing some moderate lines to check on the bonding of this next storm's snow, before I ascend something like Young's Peak headwall ;-) !

 

Cheers,

Scott Davis

ACMG Mountain Guide

[MCR] Selkirks

The CMSG ASG exam spent 4 days ski touring in the Selkirks at Benedict Creek from April 5 - 8th 

Weather:

Alpine temps remained cold , overnight temps at 6500ft from -12 to -14. Mainly sunny, calm and almost no convective activity.

Snowpack:

Deep and well settled ( 300+ on glaciers) , good powder on N-aspects , crusts on solar aspects.

Concerns: Loose wet/dry in steep terrain, persistent slabs on steep convexities (unlikely) with RP shears 40 -75 cm down. Cornices !

Avalanche activity:

Small loose dry/wet in steep terrain

Na cornice triggered slabs to size 2 , E = aspect 2500m

Skied steep 40+ degrees all aspects with only minor surface sluffing. 

Kirsten Knechtel - Mountain Guide

Hias Ahrens - Mountain Guide

[MCR] Rockies

We spent 3 days ski touring in the Rockies from April 6-8th in the Lake Louise and Bow Summit Area. On the first two days we saw convective weather with a clearing trend on the 8th. Temperatures were cold for this time of year. 

Avalanche activity was limited to point releases (loose dry and loose wet) out of steep cliffy terrain to size 1.5.

The new snow that fell April 4-5th appeared to be bonding well to the old hard surfaces that it fell on. On South aspects, the midpack consists of a variety of crust interfaces which are bridging the basal facets. Preserved dry powder on North aspects over a strong midpack, sitting on basal facets. Good coverage on glaciers, with the exception of the glacier on Mt. Niblock, where we observed areas with bare ice and variable snow depths.

Our main avalanche concern was exposure to cornices and travelling below cliffy terrain where solar triggered loose avalanches were possible. Our second concern was triggering the basal facets in areas with a thin snowpack (particularly morainal features or where rocks were visible). a few isolated windslabs were found on N-E aspects in the alpine.

Travel conditions were good overall, except for solar aspects in the mornings where ski crampons were needed. Excellent skiing on North aspects.

- ASG Exam Candidates 2015
Helen Sovdat  ACMG/IFMGA Mountain Guide
Jeff Relph  ACMG/IFMGA Mountain Guide
Dan Madell ACMG Ski Guide

[MCR] Frisby Creek Apr. 2-5

Weather and snow:

Flew into Frisby creek on the 2nd, and was pleasantly surprised by the return of winter! Previous overnight and continued convective flurries amounted to 10cm of HST that settled then melted to a crust to 1800m by the PM of the 2nd. Continued flurries on the 3rd, and some significant snow overnight early on the 4th with cold (-9) temps brought another 20cm of low density to the Alpine. Continued cold nights were refreezing the valley bottoms up to 1800m. Snow depth in the valley bottom at 1500m was 225cm, at 2400m on the south over ground it was 335cm, and on north glaciers at 2400m it was 450cm+.

Avalanche Activity:

We saw widespread evidence of the March 28th warm cycle, mostly on solar aspects and below some areas with massive glide cracks, but only some isolated older slabs to size 2 from north facing alpine steep terrain. During our trip, storm slabs to size two had run from the steep, north and northeast slopes, primarily releasing from rocky features at 45 to 50 degrees. We saw no evidence of step down even below cornice triggered storm slabs. The most obvious sign of instability from this strange winter was the extensive glide cracks on all aspects up to treeline.

Skiing: 

The best skiing was on true north and northeast aspects in the Alpine, especially the 30cm of low density snow on the 4th. The snow stayed light on shaded aspects down to 1800m, and south aspects had moist snow over the April 3rd crust in the PM, not quite corn, but very skiable. The snow carried surprisingly well down to valley bottom despite daytime freezing levels rising to 1800m on the 5th.

L. Shepherd, S. Gagnon, J. Wright  ASGs

[MCR] Coast Mountains, Russet lake area conditions

Camped at Russet Lake Hut we made ascents/descents of nearby features including Whirlwind Peak from Mar 30th to Apr 2nd, 2015.

The trip started very stormy with high freezing levels (up to 2000m) and strong winds from the

SW. The winds peaked on the first evening and then subsided. This  trend was accompanied by

falling temperatures and light snow falls up to 15 cm. The unsettled airmass remained with us

for a couple days and eventually cleared on the last morning of the trip only to deteriorate again

late in the day.

Travel conditions were generally good, initially with wet snow surfaces which changed to

supportable crust after the freezing levels lowered. In the following day we experienced a

compact upper snowpack at higher elevations with good powder skiing.

We observed a number of size 2 cornice falls and some size 3 avalanches on distant peaks that

appeared to have failed during the height of the warm temperatures during the storm. Easy to

moderate snowpack test results in thin surface layers were present. The March 11 is generally

buried down 1.5m and produced hard results.

Les Manley

Apprentice Ski Guide

Whistler Alpine Guides

[MCR] SOUTH COAST Spearhead Traverse

I spent the last three days sking a lap through the Spearhead Traverse. Cool and moist conditions prevailed. We got approx 25cm of new storm snow. 

The route is in good shape. Excellent ski quality high on N aspects, other aspects are getting baked. 

The PWL seems to have gone dormant, but probably not gone away. We saw no signs of activity since the last cycle on April 1st. But, large loads like a cornice drops or smaller slabs might initiate it.

Yesterday morning there was limited slab avalanche activity in the recent storm snow to size 2 on steep N aspects.

A large slab broke out from under the top of Overlord Mt during the last avalanche cycle. The crown is 1-2m deep (150311 PWL). It is right on the traverse line in steep terrain. The bed surface is hard ice. Many groups traditionally leave there skins on for this pitch, but now its better to do this traversing pitch without skins so there is better ski edge control. So if your doing the traverse clockwise take the skins off at the rock tower.

Happy Easter skiing!

Dave Sarkany

Sent from my Samsung Galaxy smartphone.

[MCR] Coast Range, Whistler and Duffey Regions, March 23- 31

The first Apprentice Ski Guide Exam was conducted in the vicinity of Whistler, British Columbia during 23-31 March. The course was divided into three syndicates. Each syndicate spend 6 days in the field between Whistler Blackcomb backcountry and Duffy Lakes. The weather was generally poor with challenging visibility, precipitation, and high winds in the alpine.

Weather Summary

Two significant systems hit the coast during the past week delivering precipitation in excess of 80mm. Freezing levels rose, peaking at 2500m on 26 Mar and stabilizing around 2000m. Winds were generally moderate to strong, gusting to extreme at ridge top, from the south. Skies were generally overcast and visibility was often poor.

Snowpack Summary

The drought after 11 Mar produced a 5-10cm thick crust with facets above and below. This persistent layer has been buried by subsequent storm cycles and is now buried 50-150cm below the surface. The snow packed has been capped by a new melt freeze crust 28 Mar. Wind slabs are prevalent on northern aspects in the alpine. On the glaciers, snowpack is 3+m. Below treeline, the snow is melting quickly.

Avalanche Summary

The 11 Mar crust interface showed volatility early in the week with numerous natural and skier/explosive triggered avalanches. Although activity has tapered, this persistent layer is still a concern as a low probability high consequence problem. With rising freezing levels throughout the week, new storm snow has produced a widespread loose wet cycle on steep slopes, all aspects. High winds and warm snow have contributed to cornice development and failures producing widespread avalanches to Sz 2 in the past 48h.

Travel Conditions

In the alpine, travel is generally good with a well developed spring snowpack. Expect icy crusts in the am with deteriorating conditions throughout the day. Below treeline, the snow is disappearing. It was necessary to bootpack all the way past Upper Joffre Lake yesterday. Light hikers with ice cleats will make approaches easier.

9 aspirent guides 

+

Larry Dolecki

Matt Peter

Keith Reid

Mountain Guides