[MCR] Cirque Glacier and Crowfoot Peaks, Rockies, January 28-29, 2015

After starting with some low expectations, Will Woods and I spent the last two days skiing on the Cirque Glacier, and the Crowfoot and Little Crowfoot Peaks.

Conditions above 2200m were surprisingly good as long we stayed away from the wind scoured ridges and cols and stuck to thicker snowpack areas. Travel in general is fast and supportive especially on the glaciers. Ski penetration was between 5-10cm with some good skiing to be found on all aspects. Still lots of rocks to watch for when off the glaciers and plenty of wind slab to avoid. 

Below 2200m a breakable crust exists in most areas and the tree skiing is very poor because of this, however the snowpack is more supportive than before the big warm up and uptracking was quite reasonable.

Snow depths on the Cirque Glacier averaged between 160-180cm. Of note is the presence of several crevasses in the upper quarter of the glacier, including a large open one that is in the fall line below the couloir leading down from the summit. It extends more than halfway across the glacier although part of it is thinly bridged. This would not be fun to encounter in poor visibility. (see attached photo)

Snow depths on the Crowfoot Glacier averaged 140-150cm with just a few sags noted on the skiers left when descending from Little Crowfoot. Skiing was quite good on the glacier and most of the rest of the Wapta appeared to be in similar condition. Reports of good ski conditions yesterday on the Bow Glacier were also given to us. 

Travel conditions up and down the canyon leading to Bow Hut are as easy as it gets right now and most of Bow Lake can be skate skied.

No new avalanches observed. Still some minor concerns for wind loading on steep unsupported terrain and the basal weakness in steep rocky terrain at tree line and above.  

All in all some fun skiing, nice summits and good travel. Nice to be pleasantly surprised!

--

Conrad Janzen

ACMG / IFMGA Mountain Guide

Banff Mountain Guides

[MCR] Rockies -- Lake Louise Falls, Evan Thomas Creek climbs

Fellow guide Barry Blanchard and I guided on Louise Falls today, Jan 26, and in Evan Thomas Creek yesterday. 

Despite a warm weekend and temps today hovering at or just below freezing, Louise was still in very good condition. The area saw no sun, just intermittent drizzle/sleet and fog. We found planar, plastic ice everywhere except on the crux curtain. That pitch is currently slightly more difficult than usual, with lots of swiss-cheese hooking but more limited options for solid sticks and screws. To the right of the curtain a pillar has formed that looked like it should yield nice WI5 climbing but running water and rotten surface ice today dissuaded us from investigating further. Right of that pillar, there are still several medium-sized daggers hanging in. Meltwater has dissolved much of the snow on all the ledges, and with so much blue ice now showing, we were very aware of icefall running farther and wider than usual. Not many sheltered spots on Louise right now! 

On the other hand, the climbs at Evan Thomas yesterday were definitely suffering badly from the effects of the Chinook. Judging from the amount of water flowing, they may not outlast this warmth. Surface meltwater made for very wet climbing, but more concerning was the delamination that we observed over the course of the day. Snowline was noticeably thinning low down but still hanging in; however, the first pitch of Moonlight was just body width at the base and significantly detached from the rock in the steeper middle section, and we gave it a miss. If it hasn't already fallen off, it will likely need quite a few cold days for it to bond again. The fat conditions on Too Low for Zero this year are no more (the first pitch is ice-free now) and there is plenty of creaky-looking hangfire up above just waiting for an opportunity to spoil your day. Chantilly Falls was the sole exception — it's wet but fat and blue from top to bottom. As with Louise, though, there is no snow remaining to prevent icefall from up high from threatening the climb down low. 

In addition to spontaneous icefall throughout the day, we also saw several minor rockfalls, just another reminder of the downside of the Spring-like conditions right now.

Happy Hunting!

Carl Johnston, AG/RG

Yamnuska Mountain Adventures

[MCR] Avalanche Control - Highway 93 Icefields Parkway

Parks Canada will be conducting avalanche control in the Parkers Ridge/Cirrus Mountain area of the Icefields Parkway, expect spot closures between 10am and 3pm. This will affect access to Polar Circus and Weeping Wall ice climbs and north bound access to Parkers Ridge, Beauty Creek and Jasper will be delayed during this time.
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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.
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[MCR] Road access to Mt Dennis, Rockies, January 24, 2015

The road from the town of Field to the ice climbs on Mt Dennis was closed this morning due to concerns about avalanches reaching the road. 

30cm+ of new snow fell in this area overnight accompanied by strong West winds. The avalanche hazard in this area has risen very quickly and most avalanche terrain in this area should be treated with a great deal of caution.

--

Conrad Janzen

Visitor Safety

Banff, Yoho and Kootenay National Parks

[MCR] Rockies - Kicking Horse Canyon - Avalanche Control

Avalanche Control, Kicking Horse Canyon, January 24th, 2015. No climbing in the canyon on January 24. 

 

Thank you 

 

Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure 

via

 

Peter Tucker
Executive Director
B: +1.403.949.3587
M: +1.403.689.4324
ed@acmg.ca  |  www.acmg.ca

 

[MCR] Rockies - Icefields Parkway - Weeping Wall

I climbed the lower Weeping Wall yesterday with friend Josh. We climbed the Right Hand Side and were on the bench below the upper wall before the sun came around to soften the climb. Like Mike's previous post about Murchison Falls, we experienced brittle ice and dinner plates, which required careful testing. On P2 we climbed the traditional corner line. Above the ramp, the corner was unconsolidated dry chandelier. It was fairly beat out, providing good hooks but poor protection.

Most of the lower Weeping Wall has new seeps creating fresh wet chandelier over the existing ice. We hiked up to the upper and found the choice lines there to be the same.

Brent Peters
Alpine Guide
PeakStratagem.com

Lower WW left

[MCR] Sorcerer/Murchison

Climbed the Sorcerer (1st picture) a couple of days ago and found great conditions with mostly one swing tool placements and good gear throughout the route.  There was a small cornice forming up on the climbers left side at the top.  

The driving was quite good except for 2 creek crossings that had substantial ice shelves to get over.  If you looked around a bit before you committed there were better spots to cross rather than where the tracks took you.

We climbed Murchison (2nd picture) the following day and found brittle ice that required quite a bit of cleaning.  Good protected belay spots could be found and 70m ropes would have been nice for this route.  There were no large daggers or cornices present.

The slope leading up to the base of the route had previously avalanched which made for decent walking through the big boulders.  Both Lessons of Oka and But, My Daddy's a Psycho looked to be in good shape.

Cheers

Mike Stuart 

Mountain Guide