[MCR] South Coast update - December 24

Greetings Sports Fans

 

Here is a pre-Christmas South Coastal update :

 

Anyone who has been monitoring the weather and snow reports in the past week knows that something is going on out there, and the next few days may not be the best time to go looking to head for the wild lines to test out your new boards that Santa brought you. That being said, a close watch of the weather and snow condition reports, as they change, will be a real learning experience. These kind of weather patterns can produce interesting results.

 

Conditions at this time are really changing rapidly. The freezing level is going up and down like a yo-yo which each passing front. Reports of up to a metre of new snow in the alpine in the past 24 hours, with significant winds. Also reports of isothermal snowpack below 2000m with the passing warm fronts.

 

The next big event will be today and tonight with forecasters predicting copious amounts of sub-tropical precip (30-50mm) with freezing levels reaching 2400 m.  Although this elevation may be slightly lower as you move inland.  Winds are forecasted to be up to 100 km/hr.  Keep in mind all this new precip is piling up over crusts / facets/ surface hoar in the alpine which formed in early / mid December. Although rain may penetrate through these layers at times in the storm cycles, they still might remain preserved at the higher elevations, and remain a concern for while, even if the skiing gets better next week.  

 

Professionals in the Duffey Lake area are expecting avalanches up to size 2.5 in the Alpine and possibly Treeline elevations over the next day or 2.

 

Many guides are reporting snow dissapearing rapidly at the lower elevations (below 1600 m). In fact Diamond Head has no snow in the parking lot, and it was reported to be a 1.5 km walk on before skis became useful (3 days ago). Most areas close to the coast are below treeline are below threshold for avalanching, but keep a weather eye when the freezing levels frop next week..

 

There have been a few folks poking around on the glaciers. Crevasses were beginning to bridge, however confidence in their strength will be low for a while yet.

 

Some useful sites to monitor over the next few days will be :

Whistler.Blackcomb avalanche forecast- http://www.whistlerblackcomb.com/weather/advisory/index.htm 

Whistler/Blackcomb alpine weather forecast - http://www.whistlerblackcomb.com/weather/forecast/index.htm

CAC Public Avalanche Forecasts - http://www.avalanche.ca/

 

Merry Christmas!  

Brian Gould
Mountain Guide

Brian Gould
ACMG (IFMGA) Mountain Guide / Engineer
P.O. Box 417 Squamish, BC
V0N 3G0
604-892-3570
brian@hautealpine.com
www.hautealpine.com