[MCR] Rockies, hike/scramble Mt Rundle, EEOR

Hiked and scrambled up the east summit of Mt Rundle (above EEOR [East End of Rundle]) today, May 30th,  from the Goat Creek parking lot. Boot top snow with knee deep drifts above tree line. A lot of the snow below tree line was, and had, melted by the time we were descending.

Happy trails,

Barry Blanchard

Mountain Guide

www.barryblanchard.ca

www.yamnuska.com

[MCR] ACMG Mountain Conditions Report Summary for the Rockies and Columbia Mountains issued May 27, 2010

ACMG Mountain Conditions Report Summary for the Rockies and Columbia Mountains issued May 27, 2010 Weather conditions across the Interior and Rocky Mountain regions were generally unsettled over the past week, with scattered amounts of light snow and cool temperatures dominating the higher elevations. The weather is deteriorating significantly right now (Thursday evening), as a strong upslope storm moves into the eastern side of the mountains. Expect up to 20 cm of snow at higher elevations in Banff Park for the start of the weekend, and Kananaskis Country will probably see the same. Areas to the north and west will be better, although not awesome. However, valley bottom highs of 15-20 degrees are expected in the BC Interior near Golden and Revelstoke – so warmer and less precipitation there. Expect winter conditions in all alpine areas this weekend with the new snow in the forecast. The old snowpack is well settled with no significant instabilities, but watch the bond of this new snow to old, where it's likely that small windslabs will develop in isolated areas (gullies, behind ridge crests, etc). The snowpack remains deep at higher elevations, and melt freeze conditions are key to fast travel. Several reports this past week indicated excellent travel on foot on frozen crusts. Ice climbing might still be found by keeners in alpine, north facing areas. Slipstream looks to be huge and blue; probably climbable for a few weeks to come should the weather cooperate. Reports of good travel on trails and dry rock at lower elevations will change this weekend with the new snow, but crags on the western side of the ranges should be ok. Longer rock routes on the bigger cliffs like Yamnuska or Castle Mountain need a sunny aspect, realizing that shady areas and descent gullies are probably still packed with snow and ice. Peaks like Mt. Louis are still have significant snow on them, and trails near treeline are melting and muddy. Considering all of this, and the forecast – looks like a weekend for low elevation, non-technical stuff. Let the bad weather pass and then plan on some sun exposed rock climbing, muddy hiking or high elevation powder skiing for Sunday. The weather looks to be improving daily over the coming week, with highs reaching 20 by mid week. Grant Statham 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] Rockies, Mt Yamnuska

Guided the east to west hike/scramble over Mt Yamnuska today, May 27th. Looks like the backside was basically dry with only a few small snow patches, but that was before today. Rained and snowed on us all day. 3 centimeters of new snow blanketing the backside. Snow down to the cliff bottom on the front side, then wet scree 50 meters lower. Looks like a bunch more snow coming tonight. I think that it will take a couple of days to melt off once the sun comes out. Front side trails are muddy ... surprise, surprise.

Happy trails,

Barry Blanchard

Mountain Guide

www.barryblanchard.ca

www.yamnuska.com

[MCR] ACMG Mountain Conditions Report Summary for the Coastal Mountains issued May 27th, 2010

ACMG Mountain Conditions Report Summary for the Coastal Mountains issued May 27th, 2010 The coastal mountains are under the influence of cool and unsettled weather. NORTH COAST; Limited observations from the North Coast report about 70% of normal spring snowpack. This is resulting in less bridging over the crevasses than one would find in a "normal" year. Avalanche observations have reported nothing unusual, or significant to report. CENTRAL COAST; The higher alpine areas received some snow in the past week. Storm snow amounts vary, with up to 60cm reported in some areas. The weather in general appears to be drier in central coast than the southern areas. SOUTH COAST AND NORTH CASCADES The weather in the past week was dominated by pulses of moisture with short dry breaks between sytems. In alpine areas, the moisture fell as snow from time to time. The snowpack has consolidated and has been pretty good for travelling in North cascades / Washington Pass area. The skiing is good smooth spring skiing above 5000ft, and the boot penetration is minimal, with proper boots and an ice axe, you could make approaches to South aspect alpine rock. WEEKEND OUTLOOK; Unfortunately, the weather seems to be changing to "upslope" conditions, in other words, the east side of the range is getting moisture and isn't as dry as it usually is. As I am writing this, we are camped at Frenchmans's Coulee. There were some rain showers yesterday, but the rock is dry, and the temperature is perfect, a T shirt and a sweater was all you needed. Good Luck, and be flexible with plans! Paul Bernsten ACMG/IFMGA 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] Yamnuska - correction

Hey all, sorry about that – mixed that last post up a bit there.

We did not do the route in the Forbidden Corner area due to the visible snow still at the top of the route.

Have a good one!

 

 

Mike Trehearne

ACMG - Assistant Alpine Guide

m_trehearne@hotmail.com

+1.403.679.8080

 

[MCR] Yamnuska

Just a real quick note:

 

Mike Stuart and I headed up to Yam to climb a route in the Forbidden Corner area yesterday, decided not to give it a miss due to the snow still capping the scree on the top of the route. Concerned mostly about rockfall potential, as well as curious about the state of the walk off down the back and how dry it would be. Went and did Devil’s Right Hand instead, down in The Bowl Area.

 

A quick look around from the top station on the route and looked as though the backside was almost totally dry now. Much more so than expected. Just throwing it out there for those wondering about the walk off down the east end. Looks pretty well good to go!

 

Have fun out there!

 

Mike Trehearne

ACMG - Assistant Alpine Guide

m_trehearne@hotmail.com

+1.403.679.8080

[MCR] Castle Mountain

We did some rescue training on Castle Tower today.  There is still some snow on top the Dragon’s Back.  The route on the right side above is dry.  The descent down the left side is also dry but there is still a lot of snow in the gully to deal with when you cross over while descending.  In other words, the route is doable but not in perfect condition.  Brewer’s also looks doable but there is a lot of snow on top and also in the descent gully.  I would not recommend this .  Looking down, the Dave Thompson Crag looks dry.

 

Marc Ledwidge

MG

[MCR] Rockies, Mt Athabasca

A regal ascent of  Mt Athabasca yesterday, May 24th, Victoria Day. Great travel conditions up and down on the "magic" crust. Its supportive almost everywhere and hard enough to require a fair amount of step cutting while we traveled on boot soles. Great cramponing after we strapped them on.

A party of three ascended the Silverhorn and descended via the Ramp route. We saw a dozen skiers, over our three days, enjoying great corn down low and dust on crust up high.

Happy trails,

Barry Blanchard

Mountain Guide

Yamnuska Mountain Adventures

www.barryblanchard.ca

www.yamnuska.com

[MCR] Rockies- Resplendent/Robson area May 24th, 2010

Skied up Mt. Resplendent today from the Extinguisher Tower bivi site. (We flew in and out from there) Excellent conditions. Melt freeze crust up to 3000m(the base of the Upper Robson cirque below the Mousetrap icefall). From there to the summit ridge approx. 30 cms mostly light snow with bits of wind effect in some places. New snow bonded well to old crust. Hard snow on summit ridge. Excellent ski descent, powder on the steepish upper mtn. and fast very skiable crust on the low angle Robson glacier.

Robson was mostly in cloud but we did observe that the Furher Ridge looked icy, the Moustrap has a ramp up through it to the Dome, but looks REALLY threatened by lots of scary seracs around the "Doughnut Hole". No views of the Kain face but the slopes below the Forster hut on the South face are still deep in snow. Suprisingly, the Berg Lake trail looks almost completely dry. Maybe some snow hidden by the forest canopy up high but the only snow we saw from the air was some short patches above Emperor falls.

Climbed the Extinguisher tower yesterday. It is a bit like climbing a stack of kindling. Can't say I'd recommend it.

Larry Stanier
ACMG/IFMGA Mountain Guide
laristan@telus.net
_______________________________________________
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] Saddle Peak, Lake Louise Group

Skied the Saddle Chute from between the two summits of Saddle Mountain this morning. A very supportive crust (icy!) with 5 cm of new snow was found from top to bottom. By 10:30am the crust was softening and collapsing below 2000m.
 
The trail to Saddleback Pass was snow covered 10 minutes up the trail, and will still need a month to clear before dry hiking can be found.  The Aemmer Couloir on Mount Temple had runnels that you could probably drive a car down. It wasn't looking like a pleasant ski! The Tease still looked blue, but the warmer weather has bleached its colour a little.
 
Chris Gooliaff
ACMG ASG/ARG

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[MCR] ACMG Mountain Conditions Report Summary for the Coastal Mountains issued May 20th

ACMG Mountain Conditions Report Summary for the Coastal Mountains issued May 20th The weather has been unsettled along the coast this week, However, a definite cooling trend today, with convective rain showers in the valleys and snow flurries at tree line. The weekend forecast is for a drying trend, and the possibility of clear skies. NORTH CASCADES / SOUTH COAST RANGE; A usual, the snowpack is drying up faster on the east side of this range than the west side. Soon, access to alpine areas for climbing will be a option. If stable weather conditions prevail then some alpine routes will worth considering, (paying attention to sagging cornices and avalanches from midday warming of the snowpack.) The spring skiing options will also be available for the coming days. good coverage on northern alpine and sub-alpine aspects. Glaciers also have good coverage, but crevasse bridges can deteriorate quickly with daytime warming. The spring avalanches and falling cornice chunks are also common this time of the year. CENTRAL COAST; The ski touring season is still going strong, several groups are in the Waddington / Homathco region and 2 groups are waiting to fly in from Bluff lake in the next days. The snowline has retreated up to 900m in many West side valley bottoms, and even higher on the East side. The Nusatsum Forest Road leading towards the Monarch Icefield is now open to Odegard Falls. many rivers are starting to rise, and turning cloudy this week. Today a dusting of fresh snow was reported around treeline WEEKEND OUTLOOK; The weekend looks pretty good, but the mountains may have lingering clouds, which will greatly effect the snow conditions. It might be a good idea to be flexible, and choose an objective closer to the weekend, when the weather prediction is more accurate! Paul Berntsen 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] ACMG Mountain Conditions Report Summary for the Rockies and Columbia Mountains issued May 20th, 2010

ACMG Mountain Conditions Report Summary for the Rockies and Columbia Mountains issued May 20th, 2010 ACMG Mountain Conditions Summary for the Rockies and Columbia Mountains issued May 20th, 2010 It has been a warm and wet week in the mountains. Not much overnight freezing up until the evening of the 19th. Rainfall amounts were quite variable across the ranges but it rained hard most places at some point. Scattered reports showed a cooling last night. In the Rockies at present(5pm) it is raining off and on up to treeline close to the divide and estimates are of 5-10 cm. recent snow above that. At some point this afternoon it was snowing lightly at Rogers Pass but not sticking to the ground. The excellent snow and ice climbing conditions of late last week are a warm, wet mess right now. This could heal quickly with a good overnight freeze. It would be worth having a poke at the snowpack with an avalanche probe to see how solid the freeze is. I am guessing the snowpack is presently weak and wet to the ground in most places. If I am out this weekend on steep snow I sure want to know if I am walking on a thin crust over the mush or a full depth layer of "concrete". Glacier travel conditions are also totally temperature dependent. coverage is still pretty good but those thinner low elevation snow-bridges will be especially nasty when it is warm. Glacier Park Avalanche Control Section staff talked about a few big wet slab avalanche and big cornice falls during the warm rains. Lots of the big alpine rock routes in the Rogers Pass corridor are best climbed before the snow disappears at low elevations. However, it seems wise to wait till things have cooled or at least until this warm wet avalanche cycle is over. The alders will be buried for awhile yet. It seems Banff and Jasper were cooler and they have seen very little recent avalanche activity. There was certainly a big cycle of wet avalanches and melting snow along the east slope of the rockies between the sun and rain effect in the past 3 days. East slope rock climbing conditions have improved in the wet and heat. Chinamen's pk East and North faces looks mostly dry. The snow is mostly gone above East End of Mt. Rundle except for a few big drifts. I would hold off on climbing on that face till all the snow is gone and all that choss above the cliff gets to dry out and stop moving around a bit. Closer to the Rockies divide you are probably going to run into snow heading up most valleys towards objectives like Louis, Edith, Castle. Weekend looks like it may be warm and sunny. You know the deal-start early for the snow, keep your head out from under the melting, dripping rock faces and watch out for the fresh crop of holds that were fractured in the winters MANY melt-freeze cycles. The rivers are coming up and yeah, they are still cold. Larry Stanier ACMG/IFMGA 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] Clemenceau to Columbia Ski Traverse, Rocky Mountains, May 11-18th, 2010

Just finished a great ski traverse from Mt Clemenceau to the Columbia Icefields with Simon Robbins and a fun group from Edmonton and Winnipeg .  We were able to climb Mt Clemenceau, Chaba Peak and Mt Columbia along the way and enjoyed great weather and travel conditions for most of the trip.

 

We climbed Mt Clemenceau along with Larry's and Mark's group for a very social outing on a remote peak.  Then returned to camp to discover that the ravens had enjoyed disassembling our tent fly for no obvious reason.  Thanks to all who contributed the extra duct tape!

 

At the Chaba-Wales Col, we used the lower/rappel 200m N of the "Devils Horns" rappels.  This allowed us to keep our skis on for all but one 3m step over the ridge and is a much simpler site to manage than the other option.  A 50m rope is adequate for the last person to rappel with.

 

Coverage was good for the high route out of the Bush River onto the Columbia Icefields on the 16th, however the snow below 2300m was rapidly going isothermal and we moved quickly to get out of steep terrain early in the day.  

 

Mt Columbia was in great shape on the 17th with good step kicking up and down the East Face.  Steel crampons worked best as there are several areas with only 20cm of snow over ice and 15m of almost bare ice below the summit. 

 

0°C at 3000m on the 18th meant moist snow on our descent out the Athabasca Glacier.  The upper ramp is still in good shape but the crossing under the seracs has changed a lot over the last week.  There are several sagging bridges and a couple of open crevasses to negotiate directly below the seracs. A better freeze would certainly be preferred for travelling this route.  Snow travel all the way to the toe of the Athabasca Glacier.

 

Below 2800m we saw lots of wet snow avalanches over the last couple days and limited crust recovery since Saturday.  Felt like summer was arriving quickly.

 

Cheers, Conrad Janzen
ACMG/IFMGA Mountain Guide

www.conradjanzenguiding.com

[MCR] Columbia Icefields

Climbed Boundary Peak in the Columbia Icefields Friday, May 14.

The snow pack is highly variable depending on altitude and time of day.

Below approximately 2500 m, daytime heating was producing isothermal snow by
noon. With a good overnight freeze such as during the night of May 13,
crampons were needed in the AM due to a hard melt-freeze crust. This crust
broke down rapidly as temperatures warmed up.

Above 2500 m, the crust was less pronounced and less supportive in the AM.
This layer overlies 35 cm of dry snow which is lying on a melt-freeze crust
beneath it. Foot penetration varied from 10 to 30 cm.

There have been numerous size 1.0 wet snow avalanches in the Icefields and
along the Parkway, especially from steep solar aspects and around rocks.
There was also a size 2.0 slab that came out of the North Glacier Ramp on Mt
Athabasca. The crown appeared to be about 35 cm high and the avalanche was
more than 48 hours old. See attached photo.

Of note, as of May 14th, the Icefields Campground is not yet open, and the
access road is not fully plowed. Most of the tent sites are under 50 cm of
snow. Wilcox Campground is not open yet either.

Take care,

Grant Meekins
Mountain Guide

[MCR] Eastern slopes Jasper.

Scrambled up Hawk Mountain today and had a decent look at some of the
eastern slope peaks. Even a few days ago coming in from Hinton the
peaks like Perdrie, Miette, and Cinqfoil look quite snowy on the
north sides and still some snow on the south faces down to about 2200
metres. Esplanade still has snow on the S face gully, probably good
for another week.
Cool mornings with good freeze at treeline, crust breaking down by 1200.

Hawk did not get as much of the up-slope snow from a week or so ago
and had generally less new snow.
Some snowy sections on upper ridge requires an ice axe for some
steeper and exposed hard snow. Mt Colin looked quite snowy looking
straight at the NW ridge. The summit ridge of Hawk is still quite
snowy. Mind you it is the middle of May!

Lower elevation stuff like Hidden Valley and Mt Morro's SW face are all dry.

Peter Amann

Peter Amann
Mountain Guide
pamann@incentre.net

_______________________________________________
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] South Coast Range ~ Decker Glacier

Hoping this finds Everyone keeping well and enjoying the sunny weather.
 
I took the opportunity to turn the legs over yesterday and have a look at conditions in the Spearhead Range. I went up and over the East Col, down into the Circle Glacier Basin, over to and up Decker Glacier, and out via the broad Disease Ridge/Decker col.
 
There was a good overnight freeze that set things up for Thursday morning. Though, with the current lift status and uploading times, it's a hint more challenging getting out to the good 'corn' snow to make the timing work. By midday, the temperature was plus 5* in the higher alpine and all snow surfaces were becoming quite soft. By mid-afternoon, the snow surface on high north aspects had become a little spongy and moist - but skiable. A thin but supportive crust is currently buried 5-10cm+ below the snow surface on these high north aspects and the snow below that is moist.
 
I did notice numerous recent and old natural avalanches. There were many size 1 loose-snow avalanches that have been releasing from below rocky features on all aspects.
 
The slab avalanches that I did note varied from size 1 to 2 and seemed to average approximately 20-30cm in depth. Some were triggered by cornice fall, others naturally, and at least one I suspected might have been skier-triggered.
 
The massive cornice that lives on the north-west face of Decker Mountain performed recently and ran into the terrain trap on the south side of the morraine that helps shelter the exit out of that area. Some of the debris was able to overrun the spine of that morraine. Another natural cornice fall off of Overlord Mountain and onto the north-face/glacier was also sizeable.
 
Here are some characteristics that, either individually or collectively, were associated with the recent activity:
* northerly aspects (lee)
* steep
* 'unsupported' (slope continuity abruptly terminates, for ex. in cliff bands)
* large overhead trigger
 
Caution on any sun-baked slopes, especially ones that are shallow, steep, and 'peppered' with rocks. Temperatures that, for a measurable amount of time, drop below zero overnight help to 'lock' the snowcover in place again until sun-effect or warmer air tempertaure heat things back up.
 
Measuring the quality of any overnight freeze is a prudent thing to consider/investigate during the 'freeze-thaw' cycles of Spring. How deeply have cooler overnight temperatures penetrated the snowpack, if at all? How will this affect your route planning/timing/exposure/skiing quality? Good things to ponder.
 
Cornices continue to be one of the most significant hazards out there right now. Give them lots of respect; they're weakening, large and dense, debris can travel far, and their weight can be a potent trigger for underlying slopes.
 
There's still a lot of snow in the mountains right now and the coverage is good. I hope this finds each of you in the high places, happy and healthy, and in pursuit of some grand Spring skiing.....
 
Best regards,
Dale Marcoux
ACMG Ski Guide

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[MCR] Rockies, Mt Yamnuska, Dreambed

Climbed Dreambed on Mt Yamnuska today, May 13, with fellow guide, Rob Owens. The climber's approach trail is dry until you get to the base of the face. We walked through some ankle deep snow traversing to the route. The route is in fine dry shape with the exception of the last pitch which was dripping water. We finished via the last pitch of Red Shirt.

There is snow on the back side of the mountai, boot-top deep whale blubber when we hit it. We snow-scrambled down to the Devil's Right Hand rappels and were at the base in three steep rappels (saved us from carrying our approach shoes up the route).

Happy trails

Barry Blanchard

Mountain Guide

www.barryblanchard.ca

www.yamnuska.com

[MCR] Rockies Clemenceau/Tusk May 13th, 2010

Spent the last 3 days in the Clemenceau neighbourhood. Excellent travel conditions and good weather.

Climbed Clemenceau on wednesday. Challenging and slightly complex glacier travel on the west face route. REALLY good to have excellent snow conditions and visibility for that route. Ski crampons from the bottom to the last 200 linear meters which we walked. If we get another summer like the last two, I bet it would be a nasty place to be in august.

Climbed South Ridge of Tusk today. Rock step felt pretty challenging as the last move involved a big loose flake that I couldn't justify touching. So we did a traverse right just below the top of that pitch and I left a piton there. Descended around that step via some gullies and scree ledges lower down(the Mark Klassen variation)and that was much more secure. Lots of slightly tedious, double penetration breakable crust on the south face of Tusk.

Not much daytime melting while we were there. Nil avalanche activity except some small wet point releases. Skiing was a bit crusty everywhere but would corn up well.

Larry Stanier
ACMG/IFMGA Mountain Guide
laristan@telus.net
_______________________________________________
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] ACMG Mountain Conditions Report Summary for the Rockies and Columbia Mountains issued May 13, , 2010

ACMG Mountain Conditions Report Summary for the Rockies and Columbia Mountains issued May 13, 2010 We are having one of those terrific springs where you can have excellent ski touring and rock climbing on the same day.   Forecasts are stable for a few days so take advantage of it. In the Rockies, excellent skiing conditions can be found along the Banff Jasper Highway in the Rockies.  Very early starts are in order with a planned return well before noon.  Timing will be critical if you want to enjoy good corn snow instead of some skeleton rattling and if you want to avoid high avalanche hazard.   Cornices are starting to cleave and this is the time of year where, once they fail, can either trigger deep slabs or carry enough mass to run a long ways-or both.  Again, timing and aspect are the key.  Access to the Wapta Icefields across Bow Lake is still good in the early morning but not a very good idea later in the day.  Exits down from Scott Duncan will likely be rugged and require a significant amount of hiking.   A number of people have reported excellent travelling on the Columbia Icefields with near perfect conditions for ascents of Mt. Columbia.  Again, timing will be important especially when exiting down the Athabasca glacier through the crevasse cruxes.  Some of the bigger lines for the Rockies are getting skied with excellent conditions.  Today  on the north face of Mt. Stanley a party reported good skiing with 20 to 40 cm of powder well bonded to a supportive crust.   The best skiing was on the steeper terrain above 45 degrees facing due north. Most of the waterfall ice routes are sun-bleached and finished.  On north aspects, in the very early part of the day, if you hate rock climbing, there may still be some worthwhile routes.  Front range crags are drying out and routes on Yamnuska will come back into shape with this dry sunny spell.  It is still snowy getting to the Back of the Lake but a number of the routes there are climbable.  In Jasper Park, rock routes east of town are likely coming into descent shape. In the Selkirks at Rogers Pass, excellent spring skiing can also be found.  On the Illecillewaet and Asulkan side great corn skiing has been reported by guides and there is snow down to the highway.  Make sure your day ends early or you will be facing high avalanche hazard and very tedious travelling.  Skiing on the Hermit side is essentially finished with the the lower avalanche paths and slopes melted out.  There have been no reports on the alpine rock routes on Mt. MacDonald yet but we are getting close to the time of the time of year where the rock dries off and the access and descents, while still snow covered, make these routes possible.  Marc Ledwidge ACMG/UIAGM Mountain Guide

 

[MCR] ACMG Mountain Conditions Report Summary for the Coastal Mountains issued May 13

ACMG Mountain Conditions Report Summary for the Coastal Mountains issued May 13 The week started cool with convective showers along the coastal areas, then becoming warmer and more stable as the end of the week approaches. CENTRAL COAST; Earlier this week there was substantial cold storm snow remaining on steep North aspects above 2100m (7000ft), with supportive (morning) melt-freeze crusts on all other aspects. The rivers are not running high yet, but that is likely to start changing with the warm weather today. 24 degrees Celsius in Bluff Lake. Today I heard of a successful ascent of MT Asperity from the Rainy Knob base camp. All in all the weather sounds favorable for mountain trips at this time. S COAST AND N CASCADES; Skiing is good with a variety of spring conditions. In the Coquihalla area today, the smooth Melt-freeze crust held up until late morning, then deteriorated as the surface turned wet. Steep smooth alpine features are forming glide cracks and some wet slides in steep terrain have ran to ground. WEEKEND OUTLOOK; The weather along the west side of the coast range is supposed to change with showers from a weak system starting on Sunday. It seems like the east side of the range may fare better, with drier conditions. Paul Berntsen Mtn 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] Little Jimmy Simpson, Bow Summit Area

Started at 6:15 a.m. up Little Jimmy Simpson today (May 13). We found a
very supportive crust right from the road to the summit, with good
step-kicking in the middle third of the route. The snowpack at treeline
and below is starting to thin out around the trees, but it was holding us
up nicely and travel was fast. Ski crampons were needed for travel on the
upper portion of the mountain.

We reached the top at 8:30 a.m., then waited on the summit for over an hour
for the crust to soften up for nice corn conditions. The steeper pitches
facing directly E were the softest, and waiting another hour would have
made them feel spooky. We were back at the car before 10 a.m. via some
fantastic spring corn-skiing.

Early starts and early finishes are important with these warm sunny days.
The ski season isn't done yet!

Chris Gooliaff
ACMG Assistant Ski Guide, Assistant Rock 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] Mt. Columbia

Climbed the East face on Tuesday May 11, under perfect conditions.

A strong freeze (-15 at 4 am) led to fast travel and great step
kicking on the face. Both of the bergschrunds were closed and easy to
pass. There was one spot on the face about 200 feet below the summit
where it was almost bare ice but it only lasted for about 20 feet.
The rest of the face had boot top depth steps.

The crust was breaking down by 11am so early starts (and finishes)
were a must.

The upper icefield had anywhere from 250 to 300+cms of snow so most
crevasses were covered quite well and travel was quick up the
Athabasca glacier.

The sun was the biggest hazard for us as the clear skies gave no
respite from the heat.

There were a few other parties camped around the Twins and people had
been skiing up the Saskatchewan glacier as well.

Have a great and safe weekend!

Mike Stuart
Alpine Guide/Assistant Ski 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] Mt. Thomlinson, Skeena Mtns, near Hazleton.

Ski toured into Mt. Thomlinson over the weekend via Shewiliba Ck. Classic spring tour, in high alpine, on glaciated terrain..Excellent spring conditions with a strong crust in the A.M. Shewiliba and Shegisic Glaciers have good coverage, still 3m+ probed, but some bridges starting to sag. Fresh Grizzly tracks on the Shegisic. Summited via W ridge. Ski quality was mix of breakable crust, corn and powder on N. aspects above 6300'. Weather has been great under high pressure. Alpine temps still cool, +1, and very light winds. Sky clear in A.M., with convective cloud building by noon. Snowline @ 3300', and still carrying skier weight in late PM. Very little recent avalanche activity.

Sean Fraser
ACMG Ski Guide
Smithers, BC
250-643-0505

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[MCR] Icefall Lodge

Just out from a week at Icefall Lodge. It snowed 40-60 cm on May 3 at
tree line and above. This storm snow is sitting on a hard melt freeze
crust and has consolidated into a 30- 40 cm slab. There were several
natural avalanches during the storm. I was able to ski cut several
avalanches from May 4-6 but nothing after that. Two of these were on
north east aspects and one on a west aspect. Below the crust the
snowpack is well frozen and none of the avalanches stepped down.
Temperatures stayed cold during the week with overnight lows of -15 at
9400 feet. The snow is slowly turning back to spring conditions with
corn on south aspects, moist or temperature crust on east and west
(depending on the time of day), and powder on north. There was over
300cm of snow on most of the glaciers with amounts tapering off
rapidly with lower elevations. It is generally good travel conditions
with 0-15 cm ski penetration. I was able to ski down to 4000 feet on a
south aspect and good corn before the snow ran out.

Larry Dolecki
Mountain Guide
www.icefall.ca
_______________________________________________
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] Hwy 93 North conditions.

Skied some East/NorthEast facing moraines just North of Crowfoot
Glades this morning. The storm snow from last week (20-30cm on
average in this area) was getting zapped hard by the sun today and at
2600m was getting weak by 10:30AM. Some dry snow sluffing off of
steep, North facing terrain in the alpine and I would expect some
isolated windslabs over the previous hard melt/freeze surfaces to
still be triggerable in those areas. Low of -4C and highs of 2C
before noon.

We should see more of a melt/freeze cycle over the few couple of days
which should settle out a lot of the surface slabs, at least until the
day warms up.

Cheers
Steve Holeczi
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] South Ridge Mt. Norguay/The TeaseThe ( Ice climb)

Yesterday (May 7th) I guided the South Ridge of Mt. Norguay, There was up to 10 - 15 cm from the last storm, which was quite entertaining on the crux section. I am glad that I found good gear. I stopped short of the summit about 50 to 100 meters because there was too much snow on low angle slab with no gear! I saw Sheep tracks crossing this slab with snow and huge exposure. I guess they had more nerves than me.

Today (May 8)I climbed The Tease (the waterfall) in Paradise Valley. Felt like winter with spring conditions. The ice was in great shape and dry. Felt hard for its grade, but I have been skiing all of April, so that probably has something to do with it. In the morning we were able to walk all the way in with the melt freeze crust (without snowshoes), but in the p.m we used the snow shoes till we were on the hiking trail and than we walked without snow shoes.
cheers,

Marco Delesalle
Mountain Guide
www.greatdividemountaineering.com

_______________________________________________
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] Columbia Icefields, May 2-8, 2010

Had a nice week on the Columbia Icefields with Simon Robbins and an ACC group, skiing up several peaks and getting in some good turns and good views!

 

On May 3rd we had a storm which dumped 80-100cm of new snow above 2800m and was accompanied by moderate-strong SW winds.  Cool temps and another 15cm over the next two days kept the snow settlement slow and trail breaking was good exercise.  Morning temps were between -13 and -23'C with generally broken skies over the last few days.  By this morning trail breaking was down to 10-15cm and there was a thin sun crust on solar aspects up to the summits.

 

Good coverage in most places with more than 320cm of snow above 2800m, although halfway up North Twin we encountered a wind scoured area with 40-60cm of snow and some very thinly covered crevasses.

 

A few slabs up to size 2 out on loaded aspects during the storm (i.e. the ramp route on Athabasca) but not much avalanche activity observed up high during the week.  We decided not to attempt the E face of Mt Columbia due to the amounts of new snow, but by today the snow stability seemed to improving with the regular spring cautions for daytime heating and variations with elevation.

 

Good conditions on the Athabasca Glacier ski out this morning with quick travel below the seracs and good corn from the icefall down to the toe of the glacier.

 

Enjoy the spring climbing and skiing!

 

Cheers, Conrad Janzen
ACMG/IFMGA Mountain Guide
www.conradjanzenguiding.com

[MCR] ACMG Mountain Conditions Report Summary for the Rockies and Columbia Mountains issued May 06, 2010

ACMG Mountain Conditions Report Summary for the Rockies and Columbia Mountains issued May 06, 2010 There has been spotty reporting in the past week, typical for this time of year. What we do know is that winter is alive and well in all the ranges with fresh snow reported everywhere. In a drive from the Okanagan to Banff on May 5, I observed new snow levels well below treeline in the Monashees, Selkirks and Rockies. The main activity people have been reporting on has been skiing. There is 30-50 cm of storm snow above treeline in the Rockies and one can expect similar amounts in the Columbia Mountains. This new snow is lying atop a thick, hard melt-freeze crust all the way to mountaintop. The good news is that the powder skiing is good and until we get a big heat wave we don't need to be concerned about persistent weak layers. The primary concern at the moment is how the recent snowfalls are bonding to that hard crust. Lee and cross loaded slopes where wind has caused slabs to form will be one type of terrain that should be avoided. Many of the rock climbing areas in the Rockies, such as Yamnuska, are snow covered. Head for valley-bottom venues in the short term. Spilli near Golden or the Revelstoke crags may be an option. I just came from the Skaha cliffs near Penticton and although most of the time we dodged rain showers and belayed in down jackets it was climbable every day. Only the highest elevation north facing ice climbs are still in but expect it to be winter up there. The same goes for mountaineering activities. Forecasts are looking optimistic for more seasonal weather to begin in the coming week. If it heats up rapidly expect a major spring avalanche cycle to occur with the recent snowfalls sliding on the hard crust beneath. If an extended heat wave or rain occurs the old weak layers deep in the snowpack could wake up and produce very large slab avalanches. On rock climbs expect rockfall to be a factor with warming temperatures and avoid areas where there is snow or wet rock above you.
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] ACMG Mountain Conditions Report Summary for the Coastal Mountains issued May 4th 2010

ACMG Mountain Conditions Report Summary for the Coastal Mountains issued May 4th 2010 SOUTH COAST / NORTH CACADES; The weekend weather is looking promising. The cool and unsettled airmass has brought periodic snow flurries throughout the week, is stabilizing as a weak ridge of high pressure builds onto the coast. On Wed afternoon (May 5th), I drove by the Coquihalla summit there was 10cm of moist snow over a firm base that held my weight. The snowline has fluctuated, and has been down as low as 3000ft In the Eldorado Pk area in the North Cascades, there is a report of a recent large slab avalanche (sz. 3.5) on an alpine south aspect. An aerial photo of the slide shows a large propogation that is many hundreds of meters wide. CENTRAL COAST; The weather last week continued convective, cool, and periodic snow flurries. Including a pretty good dump of snow down to 4000ft, reported mid-week in Bella Coola. The snowpack is maintaining a late winter appearance at tree-line and alpine locations. White Saddle Air service has reported numerous ski touring groups in Homathco - Waddington - Nirvana - Pass areas. There seems to be quite an international flavor this year, with groups from France, Japan, Bosnia, and Czech Republic. Weekend outlook For the South Coast and Cascades, it seems like a good opportunity to get out for some late season ski touring, while the Coastal rock climbing areas would improve after a couple of warm, dry days. Hopefully this ridge of High Pressure will develop and give us staple weather into next week! Longer trips in the Central Coast Range will be in good shape for some time to come. I was in Penticton for a few days earlier this week, where it was cool, with some occasional rain showers. Paul Berntsen, 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] Observation Peak

Skied the north side of Observation Peak yesterday. Good powder skiing from
the summit (2900 m) down to 2350 metres. Temperature on the summit at noon
was a cool -8 C. The snow-pack is still 90 cm deep at Bow Summit with over
200 cm on the Observation Peak glacier. There is 30 -45 cm of settled snow
on top of a thick temperature crust (formed during the warm weather at the
end of April). We found moderate to hard clean shears on the crust with the
compression test. No recent avalanche activity noted.

Not many skiers on the Parkway, but still lots of good skiing.

Cheers,
Brian Webster
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.