On the way to Bighorn Reserve this morning there was above freezing temperatures, overcast and looked like no freeze. It seemed like scrambling was the thing to do with the south facing ridges along David Thompson Hwy looking dry and inviting.
Returning this afternoon though was a different story -- heavy (2-4 cm/hr) snowfall and temperatures hovering around zero. At about 4:30pm, having the skis in the car, I went for a hot lap at Bow Summit. With 5 cm of heavy new snow and isothermal (wet to ground) conditions to within 30m of the "ridge" (2250m?) I was pleasantly surprised that the travel conditions were OK and the skiing didn't totally suck!
Snow on the ground all the way from Bow Summit to Canmore, about 8 cm of the heavy wet stuff on our deck right now.
Regards,
Tom Wolfe