[MCR] Surprise Pass

Attempted a ski tour to Surprise Pass. At Saddle Back there was 25 to 30
cm lo density snow, which made for excellent skiing, however once you
dropped down the steep slope into Sheol valley there was aprox 50 cm new
snow that was starting to get a slab from the humidity. The slope that
you normally descend already ran in the storm - size 2. I observed 2
other avalanches (size 2) coming out one of the gullies and one on a steep
role in the trees as I was heading back out from my retreat. Time to be
pulling back the reins.

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] Road Closure, Canmore hill near the EEOR, Kananaskis Country

_______________________________________________
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.

Avalanche Control work late in the day on Thursday resulted in avalanches reaching the highway on HWY742 (Canmore Hill, near the East End of Rundle).  As a result, this road will be closed from Goat Creek Parking lot north to the junction with the Grassi lakes turn off (where it turns to gravel).   Estimated time of opening is at least 11am on Friday April 1^st. 

 

Grassi Lakes trail is also closed while crews clear debris from the highway.

 

Thanks for your co-operation. 

 

Mike Koppang SG

Public Safety Specialist

Kananaskis Country, AB

 

[MCR] S Rockies Danger Ratings Update

_______________________________________________
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.

Due to unexpected precipitation rates and accumulation the CAC has changed danger ratings to HIGH at all elevations in the Lizard Range for today. Danger ratings for tomorrow are expected to be CONSIDERABLE at this time. There is potential for another cycle of large avalanches failing on deeply buried layers similar to what occurred in early March. This may prompt a special warning for the weekend. The updated bulletin can be viewed here: http://www.avalanche.ca/cac/bulletins/latest/south-rockies We will update this bulletin again at the usual time this afternoon. Stay tuned!

Karl Klassen
Mountain Guide
Revelstoke, BC Canada
karlklassen@telus.net

[MCR] Resplendent Mountain

I attempted Resplendent Mountain with one client and a Practicum March 26
to 29th. We did the long approach from the parking lot to Berg Lake. I
May consider a helicopter in the future. We skied all the way to 2600
meters and we stopped due to weather moving in and the ceiling dropping
down lo. At 5:00 a.m when started was a beautiful morning . The
snowpack consisted of anywhere from 100 cm at the toe of the glacier to
250-275 cm up higher where we stopped. The skiing quality was excellent
(boot top powder). The temperatures ranged from-15C to -3C depending on
your elevation and time of day. I noticed couple fractures on solar
Aspects that were a few days old, other than that no other avalanches.

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] Watchtower Basin Unnamed 2600metres

Jim and I up today into Watchtower Basin near Medicine Lake south
east of Jasper. Skied up summer trail to upper creek in 2 hours.

Always looked at this nice NE low angle ramp that leads up to a
2600ft summit on the true left side of the Basin. This peak forms the
left side of Watchtower Basin. Upper slopes were low angle up to 25
degrees and led down through a nice open bowl and boulder field and
back to the creek. Most of the terrain is less than 20 degrees.
In general at treeline the snowpack is about 120-130cm....just enough
to keep you floating!

Upper run is close to 700 metres and most of it was good skiing,
until you get back down close to the creek. Some of the westerly or
southerly slopes were sun crusted with sugary snow underneath. The
summer trail had an old track in it which was better than we thought
for coming down. Survival skiing for the last 200 metres of elevation.

We noted some localized whoomphs in some of the flatter shallower
areas in the upper bowl.

Some of the S-SW aspects across from the parking area at Watchtower
have released as well as some activity on the Medicine Lake Slabs.
Felt like winter up high....spring down in the trees.

This is a great trip, over 1000 metres elevation gain from the road
and about 8 kms one way.
Probably best done a bit earlier in the season, and pick a good snow
year! Certainly an aesthetic line and maybe a possible new classic in
the Jasper area?

Peter Amann
Mountain Guiding
Box 1495, Jasper AB, T0E 1E0
780 852 3237
cell 780 931 2521
www.incentre.net/pamann/
pamann@incentre.net
amannpeterr@gmail.com

[MCR] Rockies, Divide Creek

_______________________________________________
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.
I guided a ski tour up Divide Creek to the Mt Niblock/Mt Whyte Col today, March 29th. We parked on a plowed pull-out/road at a bridge over the train tracks 1/2 a kilometre east of the Alberta/BC border. You can carry your skis down under the bridge and start skiing there. Divide Creek is 1/2 kilometre away as opposed to 3 if you park at the Lake O'Hara parking lot.

The tour has been seeing some traffic and there was a good up track to treeline where it got blown in. Boot top ski penetration to the col which we gained on the Mt Whyte end. The skiing was a little heavier than my last week on the Wapta, but still good. Good enough that we opted for a second lap on the glacier and decided to ski from the prominent bench on the glacier's west side. While track setting in that direction my pole probing indicated about 80 cms of firm bonded snow and then a soft structureless layer of about 20 cm to a hard surface. Surprised I dug down with my hands and found the soft 20 cm layer to be basal facets sitting on glacier ice. This was at about 9000 feet and on the glacial bulge just shy of the aforementioned 'bench'. I suspect there must have been significant wind scouring here as 1 meter of snow seems shallow to me. We stopped, backtracked, and skied the slope where it was less steep and holding more snow.

Happy trails,

Barry Blanchard

Mountain Guide

www.barryblanchard.ca

www.yamnuska.com

[MCR] Rockies Ice Conditions

_______________________________________________
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.

Spent the past 4 days guiding ice around the Rockies. Guinness Gully- still in the shape it has been all winter....great!  Seems like sun hits the upper mountain by noon or 1, so nice to get an earlier start. Still lots of snow in between pitches and on the sidewalls. Professors- As Kris' post.  Fat, dry (at the time) and buried anchors.  Also lots of snow above the route still.  The final pitch is in beautiful shape and one could make it quite challenging by taking the far right side.  You can bike a bit further then where the road splits, and then the snow gets very deep. Louise Falls- As fat as ever.  Some of the big daggers on the right side are now touching down.  Still don't fully trust them, but they are starting to have a base.  Snowline/Moonlight- As Barry mentioned earlier, Snowline is thinning out.  It was still very climbable yesterday with decent protection, but delamination could play a role in its demise.  Moonlight appears to be growing, fat and wet. Great ice conditions to be had! Sarah Hueniken ACMG Alpine Guide www.sarahhueniken.com

[MCR] Chic-Choc Mountains, Gaspé Peninsula, Québec

I skied the Mine Madeleines area in the Chic-Chocs Mountains, Gaspé
Peninsula from March 22 to March 27 guiding cat-skiing groups and film
crews.

Winter was still being felt in full force with 30-40cm of light new
snow on Sunday March 27, winds from the SW reaching average speeds of
60 km/hr gusting much higher and air temperatures of -8 celsius.
This layer of new snow sat on 2 crusts. A thick rain crust formed on
March 13th was found on all aspects and elevations while a thin
suncrust formed on March 23rd sat on 5-10cm of low density snow
overlying the rain crust on all solar aspects.

This made for difficult terrain choices as the powder skiing could
only be found on wind loaded slopes while all other aspects were blown
bare to the rain/sun crusts. The newly formed windslab was reactive to
skiers as we observed a remotely triggered avalanche (by the guide
skiing ahead of the group) size 2 that was 80cm deep on a SE aspect.
Just preceding the avalanche, a very large and loud "whoomph" was felt
and heard by the group waiting at the top of the slope.

Conditions can change rapidly and drastically in the Mines Madeleine
area where we skied and skiers/boarders planning to go there should be
aware of the fact that forecasted amounts of snow are sometimes off by
a factor of 10. On March 26 and 27, the forecast called for 2 to 4 cms
and we observed 20 to 30cms...

Please check the public bulletin produced by the Centre d'avalanche de
la Haute-Gaspésie before venturing in the steep terrain of this remote
area: http://www.centreavalanche.qc.ca/ or contact the local ski
guiding companies that are still operating.

Photo: Cuve des Bouleaux, skied by the cat group from the low col left
of the image and by film crew from several locations at the top of the
ridge on March 25 before the storm arrived.

J'ai skié au Mine Madeleine dans les montagnes Chic-Chocs de Gaspésie
du 22 au 27 Mars guidant des clients en cat-ski et des équipes de
tournage.

L'hiver n'a pas quitté la région car nous avons reçu de 30 à 40cm le
Dimanche 27 Mars, des vents de 60km heure en moyenne provenant du Sud-
Ouest et des températures de -8 celsius.
Il n'était pas facile de trouver le terrain idéale à la glisse avec
poudreuse car la plaque de neige se trouvait sur deux croutes, une
formée le 13 Mars durant un évènement de pluie sur tous les versants
et l'autre formée le 23 par le soleil. Une petite couche de neige se
trouvait entre les deux croutes.

Une avalanche déclenchée à distance par le guide a été observée,
classe 2 et 80cm de profondeur à la couronne sur un versant SE. Un
bruyant et fort whoomph a été entendu par le groupe attendant en haut
de pente.

Les conditions changent rapidement dans la zone des Mines Madeleine et
les skieurs et planchiste doivent savoir que les prévisions météos
sont parfois imprécises. Nous avons observé de 20 à 30 cm quand les
prévisions parlaient de 2 à 4cm.
Consultez le bulletin du Centre d'avalanche de la Haute-Gaspésie: http://www.centreavalanche.qc.ca/
ou contactez les guides de ski de la région avant de vous aventurer
dans le terrain avalancheux de cette belle région montagneuse.

Photo: Cuve des Bouleaux, skiée par le groupe en cat ski du col à
gauche de l'image et par les filmeurs en haut de la crête avant que la
tempête arrive.

Sylvain Hébert
ACMG Ski Guide
Revelstoke, BC.

[MCR] Wapta Icefields, March 25-28, 2011

Excellent ski conditions continued on the Wapta Icefields during the last fours days on a First Summits trip with the ACC.  We had 5-10cm of new snow in some overnight squalls and mostly clear weather during the days.  Little wind effect anywhere made for good powder skiing and ski penetrations of about 10-15cm kept the trail breaking easy.  Sun crust forming on steeper solar aspects in the alpine and on all solar aspects at lower elevations.

 

Average of 250-300cm of snow on the main Icefields with some thin spots on glacier bulges and the toe of the glaciers down to 160cm.  Good travel into Bow and out Peyto on supportive surfaces which were starting to break down in the early afternoon with the warming temperatures. 

 

We saw no new slab avalanches, quite a few loose snow avalanches on steep solar aspects triggered by daytime warming, and a couple small recent cornice failures.  Still cautious about wind loaded features and thin snowpack areas.

 

Enjoy the spring skiing!   
 

Cheers, Conrad Janzen
ACMG/IFMGA Mountain Guide
Trip photos at www.banffmountainguides.com

[MCR] Mt Hector

March 27, 2011

The lower canyon on the Mt Hector approach is debris-filled from large wet avalanches most likely from the warm spell last week.. Above the canyon cornices are quite large. from the predominant W & SW winds.
For a big snow winter the upper moraines below the glacier are minefields of rocks covered with very little snow. The trough above the moraines ( normal approach) is also covered with old debris from avalanches triggered by a small cornice fall which which in turn triggered the various slabs on unsupported ledges on the E facing spur from Mt Hector. At around 2750m there is over 250cm HS. The skiing on the upper glacier was excellent, although by sunday the 35cm Hst was settling into a soft slab which rests on a variable windcrusts. It's still winter up high, and spring conditions on sun-exposed slopes at lower elevations.

Greg Yavorsky
UIAGM 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 - Wapta Traverse

Just to add a few things to what Barry reported on the Wapta: I guided the Wapta Traverse, Peyto Lake to Sherbrook Lake, for the ACC last week (Sat to Friday). The way up to Peyto is in good shape. We had to take our skis off once to cross the creek at the head of lake. We skinned up to the base of the moraine and then boot packed up to the flats above the research station. From there you can ski all the way down to the toe of the glacier. About 1.6m of snow there. Strong snowpack all the way to Peyto. There is more than 3m of snow on the upper sections of the glaciers on the Wapta and the crevasses are well covered/bridged. The Balfour high col is in good shape and most people are taking the upper ramp this year. There have been a few seracs that have come down in the last few days. We also skied a few lines on the Balfour glacier. Coverage is also good there with around 3m of snow on the ice. We took the Niles ramp exit and there was a size 2 cornice triggered avalanche on the lower ramp. It covered the tracks from the last few days. It was very fresh, most likely came down on Thursday mid-day (see photo) when it was warm and the sun came out. There are still lots of overhead hazard (cornices and slabs) on the ramp and by mount Niles. There is also a breakable crust that starts at around treeline, all the way down to Sherbrooke Lake. Lots of fun! Félix Camiré ACMG Hiking & Ski Guide elgato.ca

[MCR] Lookout Col, Roger's Pass, Selkirks

out for a late morning stroll up to Look Out Col via the Illecillewaet valley today.

temps remained below zero on the North aspect, with -1.5 at 1500m / 1pm and -3.2 at 2100m / 3 pm observed. a gentle downflow wind kept things cool.

aprox 5cm of new snow overnight has drifted slightly, leaving pockets up to 10cm deep over top a mix of wind press & temperature crusted snow. in some spots the new snow had a thin windpress layer on top. we only saw some very minor cracking around ski tracks (no more than 1m in length) but no signs of instability - the new snow was not reacting in the area we skied. snow surface remained dry until reaching the valley floor (aprox 1300m), or where there was more sun effect, ie westerly aspects. we found slightly moist snow on more North West aspects in the area, but none on true North aspects. no signs of pinwheeling or wet sliding snow on any sun affected slopes we observed.

trail breaking was easy with a consistent 5-10cm of ski pen, although it was more challenging where the new snow overlies a hard windslab.

coverage looked good on the Illecillewaet glacier, with only a few crevasses visible - see picture below taken from just below the Lookout Col.

happy trails!

dave healey
asg

[MCR] Rockies, Wapta Icefield

I guided a fine week of skiing on the Wapta Icefield from Bow Hut, March 20th-25th. Easy travel across Bow Lake and up the Canyon approach to the Hut. Easy travel everywhere we went on the Icefield. Mts Olive, St Nicholas, Gordon, Rhondda and Habel (Rhondda North) were pretty much getting skied up daily. Great boot-top to knee deep skiing on the northeast through northwest aspects that we skied over the week.

We witnessed a size 1 skier triggered surface slab (a party other than ours) off of a steep convex roll on the northeast ridge of St Nic at about 9000 feet on March 21st. There had been significant snow transport from southwest winds over the evening previous.

A fellow guide/avalanche forecaster and I witnessed a size 1.5  surface slab release naturally from the far east end of the glacier that sits above the hut approach from about the 9000 foot level. The avalanche occurred at 10:00 am and had both said forecaster, and myself, scratching our noggins trying to figure out what the trigger was as the sun had yet to touch the slope ... a wee lurch in the glacier? another mountain goat or wolverine lost?

Happy trails,

Barry Blanchard

Mountain Guide

www.barryblanchard.ca

www.yamnuska.com

[MCR] Howsons 23 March 11

A new line was skied for the first time yesterday. Lake Bowl overlooks
the summer floatplane landing on the Upper Burnie Lake. It is an E
facing steep 800 m line that requires skiing a deeply incised gully in
the lower part. The upper part are steep rolls underneath the rock faces
of Lakehead Peak.

The snowpack is mostly well settled. There has been some very low
density snow that continues to be very slippery underfoot and could be a
problematic layer once buried. Otherwise, we are concerned about cornice
falls and rather large and fast sluffs in the steep terrain we have been
skiing.

Today it snowed in the high alpine only and there was quite a bit of
wind transport from the ESE. Several large icefalls did not trigger
slabs, but cleaned out the slopes below nonetheless.

The snow continues to provide very good skiing in all shaded aspects
while direct sun exposed areas have a crust.

--
Christoph Dietzfelbinger
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] Robertson Glacier, Kananaskis Country

 
Staff training today on the Robertson Glacier.
 
A mix of sun and cloud this morning turned to convective flurries through the day. Temperatures were mild and the winds swapped back and forth from SE to SW through the day. Between 3 and 5cm of new snow fell overnight. The areas we skied today were not affected by solar radiation or warming, but it certainly was on our mind given the recent transition to spring.
 
The glacier is very well filled in at the moment except for a couple of obvious crevasses near the toe, and a section in the middle that had been previously scoured down to bare ice by a large avalanche some time ago. Total snowdepths were in excess of 350cm at mid glacier. Travel conditions were quick and easy with 10 to 20cm ski penetration. The upper glacier has been heavily wind affected and now has a variety of surfaces including, soft slab and bullet-proof hard slab at 2800m. Ski quality suffered as a result, but did improve significantly as we lost altitude.
 
Unfortunately cloud and snow moved in as we reached the col, so we did not get a good look at the slope descending to the Haig Glacier. The very top of this slope is scoured down to bare rock, which is not unusual.
 
Numerous cornice failures were observed in different parts of the range today, including Snow Peak (near Burstall Pass) and Mt. Smuts. Cornice failures seem to be happening on a daily basis.
 
Play safe!

Jeremy Mackenzie
ACMG/IFMGA Mountain Guide
Kananaskis Country Public Safety

[MCR] Selkirks: Valkyr Range

Another good week at Valkyr Lodge. We didn't receive much snow over the week in this zone but the skiing was good nonetheless. 

Our main concerns for most of the week were isolated windslabs and large cornices. There were a few small naturally-triggered windslab avalanches and two large cornice falls with a wind event the night of the 18th/19th.

A significant warming event occurred March 20, which caused us to avoid solar aspects. This bright day caused suncrusts to form on all sun affected slopes from E thru NW aspects from mountain top to the valley bottoms. Numerous loose snow and thin slab avalanches occurred on south aspects on March 20 with the warming.

We didn't see evidence of widespread deeper instabilities in snow profiles or with the warming event, cornice falls or skiing. However, our nearest neighbours have been seeing issues associated with suncrusts buried in February and early March on south aspects.

Drove through Rogers Pass and the Rockies last evening and things were looking decidedly spring-like with lots of wet snow avalanches and most slopes looking like they've had some degree of cooking.

Mark Klassen

Mountain Guide

[MCR] Battle Abbey Lodge, Selkirk Mountains, March 12-19, 2011

Just out from a week of ski touring at Battle Abbey Lodge in the Selkirk Mountains with Roger Laurilla.  We had an excellent time with 50-60cm of fresh snow early on and three days of clearing weather to finish the week. 

 

Despite expecting some wind effect up high after the storm we found boot top powder from summit to valley in the last several days with little wind effect anywhere.  Suncrust was forming on steeper south aspects.  Ski penetration was from 15-20cm which made for good trail breaking and great skiing.  Snow depth on the glaciers was 3m plus with good snow bridges except in areas that had seen large avalanches early in the season.

 

We had three main concerns in the snow pack to finish our week.  The first is a couple of buried sun crusts in the top meter of snow on steep southerly aspects.  These seem to be gaining strength but we were quite cautious about our exposure on South aspects and stuck to moderate angled terrain.  We observed several natural avalanches up to size 2 on these layers when the sun came out and heated up the surface snow on Thursday.

 

The second is the potential for cornice failures which could trigger deeper slabs in steep alpine terrain.  The cornices have grown very large recently and seem to be failing with some regularity in the warmer temperatures.  Most of the smaller cornice failures we saw did not trigger any substantial slabs, however Friday we saw a natural size 3-3.5+ on the North face of Mazinaw Peak that went down to the basal facets on the steep glacier ice.  This was likely triggered by a cornice failure.

 

The third was the potential for buried wind slabs in the alpine on steep convex rolls.  These seem to be gaining in strength and we were able to ski a lot of steep planar terrain and smaller steep rolls up from 45 to 50 degrees, but stayed away from cross loaded areas and areas with variable snow pack depths.
 

Snowing lightly as we left with more in the forecast...

 

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

[MCR] Rockies, Snowline and Chantilly Falls

I guided Snowline and Chantilly Falls today, March 19th. Moonlight
Falls is getting fatter and Snowline is getting thinner. Take 3-4 X
10 and 13 cm screws for the first 20 meters of Snowline.

Chantilly is BIG.

Happy trails,

Barry Blanchard
Mountain Guide
www.barryblanchard.ca
www.yamnuska.com

[MCR] Kootenay Park Stanley Peak Burn March 19

Excellent ski quality today in Kootenay Park in the burn on the northwest shoulder of Stanley Peak, right above the highway. Ankle deep to boot top powder skiing, with no other ski tracks in the area. No wind effect.

-8 deg at the highway in the morning, warming to +1 deg with filtered sun in the afternoon.

Jordy Shepherd
Mountain Guide
www.PeakAlpine.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] Western Monashee Mountains, North of the TCH, West of the Perry River, NE of the Gorge and Queest mtn. March 19th, 2011.

Monashee Mountains, North of the TCH, West of the Perry River, NE of the Gorge and Queest mtn. March 19th, 2011.
 
Snow conditions are good in this little mountain range. We have roughly average seasonal snow depths above 1500m-WAY more than average below that. Travel is either pretty crunchy or slushy below 1300m and rather laborious on foot up high. Excellent uphill ski travel everywhere and the bad downhill skiing is all about the crusts and painfully obvious.
 
As of yesterday afternoon, after two weeks here, we had only two main concerns.
 
The first was two suncrusts buried in steep south facing terrain. In this neighbourhood, very approximately, one is down about 50 cm and the other about 1m. It is still possible that some of these south facing slopes between 35 and 50 degrees have a thin layer of loose, facetted crystals on top of one or both of the suncrusts. I think it is "unlikely" these layers could be triggered by the weight of skiers or sledders in this neighbourhood, but I am absolutely certain that the consequences could be disastrous, especially in steep glades. I have left them alone for the past two weeks.
 
Cornices started out the winter thin and then rotted during the dry days of december. They grew slowly through january and february, but in march, with lots of snow and relatively light winds they have taken on much more height and mass on top of the december junk pile. In places I have never dealt with cornices before, in the past two weeks I have been cautiously doing all sorts of goofy mini cornice control with shovels, short bits of rope, on skis and with the odd belay. The big cornices are REALLY BIG and I swear I can hear them creaking and groaning when the temperature does a big swing up or down. Again, I have been going for the simple answer and just trying to stay out of harm's way, above and below them for now.
 
The suncrust will heal and be less of a concern in the near future, but I am guessing that cornices will be a valid concern in parts of the alpine till the first houseboats collide in Shuswap lake.
 
Meanwhile, most days, we have been skiing terrain up to 50 degree and some guests have been hucking like fools all over the rest of the tenure. We were managing or avoiding windslabs at ridge crests and as soon as we felt the storm snow was trustworthy, we were skiing steep, relatively planar Northwest, North, Northeast and East facing terrain with lots of clever ski cutting, spotting and coaching, one at a time and loving it.
 
The ice is still a bit thick for waterskiing on Mara Lake, but in yesterday's view from the alpine, Copper Island in Shuswap lake looked like a really nice place to go floating by.
 
Larry Stanier
ACMG/IFMGA Mountain Guide
laristan@telus.net
 
 

[MCR] Aster Lake Area, Kananaskis Country

<<Mt Warrior.jpg>> Ju <<Mt Joffre.jpg>> st spent the past three days
(March 17-19th) ski touring around Aster lake in Kananaskis Country.

There was a strong SW wind event on the evening of the 16th that carried
on into the evening of the 17th. Trees were rocking around and we were
expecting most alpine terrain to be wind hammered. On the 18th we were
able to climb up towards Mt Warrior and find that the alpine had
(surprisingly) little to no wind affect. We were encountering pockets
of soft slabs up to 40cm thick along ridgelines and in immediate lees
but there was not the widespread hard slabs that we were expecting. We
were able to find a surface hoar/facet/preserved stellar layer down
40-60cm throughout the area that was producing moderate sheers. As
expected, the surface hoar was most apparent on northern aspects and in
below treeline areas. In the alpine, there were isolated pockets of
surface hoar but it was not as widespread. Ski quality was excellent
in low density boot-top powder and on average 250-300cm in the alpine.

We stuck mainly to N aspects and skied alpine terrain up to 30deg and
below treeline areas up to 35deg(ish). There are some big cornices up
in this area so we choose routes that avoided being underneath these
types of hazards.

On Friday skies were clear and we were able to get a look back towards
Mt Joffre (see photo). More snow in this area than I have seen in some
time. Travel in and out via hidden lake was pleasant.

Mike Koppang
Public Safety Specialist
Kananaskis Country, AB

[MCR] Rockies, Coire Dubh

I guided Coire Dubh today, March 18th. The route has not seen much traffic as of late, we had a bit of postholing to get through the forest drifts. The climb is in good shape with higher than average snow levels. A size 1.5 avalanche has filled in the creek drainage below the route. Slab instability wasn't an issue today, but that could change with the forecasted east slope storm tomorrow. The final two -old- bolt belay on top of the last ice pitch is either buried, or the boulders containing the bolts have fallen away. We climbed the 5.6 corner of the Integral and then rappeled. That corner was done without crampons, but could have been done with, six of one and half a dozen of the other. The biggest threat today was the cornices that are at ridgeline. Seems to be the year of cornices. Happy to see it so cold last night, not so happy to feel the power of the sun today. We saw several fist sized rocks melt out from the climber's right hand ledges once we were above that part of the gully.

Happy trails,

Barry Blanchard

Mountain Guide

www.barryblanchard.ca

www.yamnuska.com

Coire Dubh and cornices, March 18th.

[MCR] Rockies, Louise Falls

I guided Louise Falls today, March 17th, green rope, and wee leprechaun of a fellow guide in tow with my guest. Happy St Paddy's day to you all.

The big blue Louise Falls is in fine shape. The crux feels like pumpy hooked out grade 4. Huge daggers are running with water, and gaining mass on climber's right. We belayed under the protection of the rock roof 1/2 ropelength up and then did a long pitch to climber's left of the pillar, walked behind it, belayed, then climbed the pillar via climber's right. The top out on the route has been filled in, and smoothed over with snow. Some snow mushrooms are hanging above the exit and may be a threat later on a sunny day (tomorrow?). The walk off was all snow walking and down climbing, no ice exposed anymore. Numerous mushrooms hanging over the walk off (It is a great snow year, no?). The trail cuts across the avalanche slope mid path to get back to the base, but felt like a ribbon of steel today. Having said that we did carry beacon, probe and shovel up the route and down the descent -specifically for the descent.

'Beannachtam na Feile Padraig!'

Barry Blanchard

Mountain Guide

www.barryblanchard.ca

www.yamnuska.com

[MCR] Avalanche control Yoho March 18/2011

Parks Canada will be conducting avalanche control on Mt Stephen and Mount Field tomorrow March 18/2011.

 

No ice climbing, skiing, or any other activities in these areas tomorrow.

 

Thank you for your cooperation.

 

Steve Holeczi

Visitor Safety Specialist

Banff/Yoho/Kootenay National Parks

Mountain Guide

 

[MCR] Rockies, A Bridge Too Far

Got scooped today on Snow Line (thanks for writing on your rig), and assumed that the second vehicle in the lot was off to Moonlight Falls. We continued on to A Bridge Too Far. A decent trail leading to the climb. The route is big right now. There are some big cornices on top of the steep rock wall, way up there (I don't recall seeing these cornices in my ten plus climbs of this route over the last 25 years), and some cornices clinging to the tree fence, on climber's left, above the lower three steps of ice.

A cool breezy day up there with sub zero temperatures until about 15:00 when the air temps climbed to around zero.

Happy trails,

Barry Blanchard

Mountain Guide

www.barryblanchard.ca

www.yamnuska.com

[MCR] Rockies, King Creek

I guided in King Creek today, March 15. All three ice flows are in fine shape. We climbed the second pitch of the furthest upstream route and can recommend it, a fine short piece of technical climbing.

We climbed Magic Touch last Wednesday and it is in good shape with good ice leading into the mixed climbing. Looked better today with less snow cover.

The approach trails is doing well, but I'd be wary of all the west facing slide paths on the first sunny day that we get now that spring is here. I think that they will all run into the creek on that day. I was watching the paths on both sides of the creek on the way in and out.

Happy trails,

Barry Blanchard

UIAGM/IFMGA Mountain Guide

http://www.barryblanchard.ca

http://www.yamnuska.com

barryb3@telus.net

1 403 609 4615

cell 1 403 609 1321

[MCR] Avalanche Conditions Update

The CAC has published an avalanche conditions update for British Columbia. You can read it here:

 

http://www.avalanche.ca/cac/library/researchandarticles/avcondupdate110315

 

Comments, suggestions, or questions can be addressed to me:

 

Karl Klassen
Mountain Guide/CAC Public Avalanche Warning Service Manager
Revelstoke, BC Canada

kklassen@avalanche.ca

[MCR] Lake Louise Falls and Area Observations

A rather alpine feel to Louise falls today.  With a great deal of strong multi directional winds, including straight up vertical.
 
With the recent snows of Sunday evening, there has been plenty of redistribution from one side of the valley to the other.
 
Temps hovered around -1 all day.  The climb is in good late season shape.  The center dagger is touching, but not in anything close to climbable.  Still plenty large free hanging daggers at far right.  Showering profusely.
 
A healthy size slough, even reasonable to say avalanche came over the climb early in the day, leaving the open area at the top trees fairly clean. 
 
The significant snow transport and drifting made it an easy choice to not take the walk off today.  The trail was drifted in and the potential for a large slough to come out naturally and sweep someone off their feet very possible.  Use caution if you happen to break the trail first.
 
On the hike out a large crack and rumble was heard from the plain of six and an alpine pocket feature on the west slopes of Fairview release a size 1.5, that ran over cliffs.  
 
It is certain there are lots of new slabs on all aspects and elevations from today's blustery events.   
 
Have a good look at what might be hanging above your next objective.
 
Merrie-Beth Board
ACMG Full Ski/Assistant Alpine guide
 

[MCR] Rockies, Healy Pass

I guided a ski tour in the Healy Pass area today, March 13th. Good skiing off of the ridgeline about 1km east (towards Mt Bourgeau) of Healy Pass.

We found a snow depth of 220cm on a North-West ascpect at 7400 feet. A snow profile there revealed a lot of well bonded snow with and easy compression test producing a planar shear down 20 cm, this is at a new snow/old surface interface. A second planar shear occurred down 30 cm that was in the moderate range. Most concerning was the textbook "pop" that we found 65cm down. This was in the hard compression test range, but was an absolutely clean planar failure. We concluded this to be the same layer discussed in the Avalanche Hazard Forecast for Banff dated March 12. We also concluded that it was not the day ski any terrain steeper than 20 degrees in this area.

Happy trails,

Barry Blanchard

Mountain Guide

www.barryblanchard.ca

www.yamnuska.com

[MCR] Rockies, Kananaskis, King Creek Canyon

In King Creek today, despite lots of fresh snow the conditions were feeling very Spring-like.  The trail in is well-packed but the creek is rising and in several key spots the crossings are not long for this world. The sun is now coming most of the way down into the canyon (though not yet onto the climbs) and by mid-morning there was lots of sloughing off the steep features above the climbs. The routes are currently all still in fair shape - though heavily travelled - but had plenty of running water by day's end with noticeable thinning/erosion just over the course of the day today.  Many new wet sluffs in all the gullies on the way out, though nothing substantive.  

Still a workable venue right now, but if the forecast holds, I wouldn't bet on for how much longer.

Carl Johnston

RG, AAG

[MCR] Weeping Wall

Up to the Weeping Wall yesterday after deciding there was too much new snow for the Trophy Wall.

The entire wall is feeling the effects of the powerful Spring sun and an early start is required.

We went up the Center line and a good amount of cleaning was needed to find solid protection. Long screws were nice to have. Lots of features for the feet but the climbing was at the guidebook grade.

Of note were the large (fridge size) chunks of blue ice that covered the entire left side of the base of the wall.
All of the normal belay spots for the first pitches of Sniveling, Left Hand and the Center line were obliterated. The culprit looked to be the sun and broken daggers from high up on the left side of the wall.

More and more rock is getting exposed on sunny days. It was worth it for us to plan our line from the road in order to minimize the hazard climbing, standing or belaying with something fragile above us.

Have fun!

Mike Stuart
ACMG Alpine/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] Special Public Avalanche Warning for SE BC

A number of large, destructive avalanches in the SE corner of BC have been reported in the last 12 to 24 hours. Areas that received significant loads of new snow in recent days are reporting size 3 to 3.5 avalanches with crowns 200-300cm thick. In some cases these are running on relatively low angle terrain and are propagating across significant terrain features (one fracture line crossed a pronounced ridge feature SE aspect on one side, NE aspect on the other). We suspect the rapid loading and significant accumulations of new snow coupled with warm temperatures and perhaps windloading have overloaded deeply buried weak layers. The most likely suspect seems to be a rain crust/facet combo that formed in mid-January.  More snow with continuing warm temps are forecast for this region and we suspect this condition will persist for at least several days after the weather abates. We are also remembering how a similar storm in mid-January continued to produce large slides during the cooling trend after the end of the storm—even though the weak layers are not quite the same, the weather pattern is similar. I personally would be careful during and for a couple of days after any cooling trend.

 

This condition has prompted the Canadian Avalanche Centre to issue a special public avalanche warning for the area:

 

 

Special Public Avalanche Warning for

Backcountry Recreationists in Southeast BC

 

March 11, 2011, Revelstoke, BC: The Canadian Avalanche Centre (CAC) is issuing a special public avalanche warning for southeast BC. This warning includes the mountainous areas from the US border north through Moyie and Cranbrook to Wasa, and east through Sparwood to the Alberta border. This warning is in effect immediately and will extend through the weekend to at least Tuesday March 15.

 

A recent storm dropped a large amount of snow in the area, explains Karl Klassen, Manager of the CAC's Public Avalanche Warning Service. "The warm and heavy snow has added a significant load to the snowpack," says Klassen. "Continuing warm temperatures and additional snowfall have the potential to create large and destructive avalanches, running to valley bottom."

 

The CAC is advising all backcountry users to avoid avalanche terrain. "Skiers and snowmobilers should be especially wary of stopping or regrouping in areas exposed to avalanche terrain from above, even in valley bottoms," adds Klassen. "This is not the time to be making aggressive terrain choices."

 

Every member of a backcountry party needs to be equipped with a shovel, probe and transceiver. The CAC strongly recommends that all backcountry users take an avalanche awareness course. Snowpack stability changes constantly throughout the winter; backcountry users need to check the avalanche bulletin regularly to keep informed of conditions in their area. Avalanche bulletins are can be found at www.avalanche.ca.

—30—

For more information contact:

Karl Klassen, Manager Public Avalanche Warning Service

James Floyer, Public Avalanche Forecaster

250.837.2141 (227)

 

Karl Klassen
Mountain Guide
karlklassen@telus.net

[MCR] Hector Lake Area, Rockies

Spent the day skiing around treeline in the Hector Lake area.  Steady snow throughout the day brought the recent storm snow up to 35-40cm which made for excellent ski quality throughout the day but deteriorating avalanche conditions.

 

We had one skier remote size 1.5 avalanche on a thin and variable sun crust down 35-40cm on a steep southerly aspect from about 20m away at 2300m, and cracking and soft slabs failing on steeper rolls on Southerly aspects.  On the N aspects there was some power sluffing in steeper terrain but no slab failures that we noticed.  Some light wind effect at treeline to watch for as well.

 

Throughout the course of the day we also observed and heard several large cornice failures coming out of steep unskiable NE facing terrain in the alpine and saw one natural size 2 slab fail on an East aspect at treeline, also in very steep unsupported terrain.  I suspect the wind was moving the snow around up high fairly well.

We stuck to moderate angled, well supported terrain with little overhead hazard and had a fun day of skiing!

 

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

[MCR] Central Coast Mountains; high in the alpine surface hoar

high alpine surface hoar on the upper Tellot Gl

I have been skiing areas between the Homathco valley and the Klinakini valley the past few days.  It has been clear and unusually calm at high elevations.  I have observed a layer of surface hoar with crystals up to 20mm at 10,500ft!  Some aspects have a slight sun-crust, with surface hoar on top of the crust

Today we are getting southerly winds and moderate snowfall, presumably this layer is getting buried in some areas.  Hopefully the southerly wind has destroyed a lot of the surface hoar, but there may be areas where it is getting buried today.  In general the mid and lower snowpack seems to be fairly strong on the coastal side of the divide.

Paul Berntsen

ACMG/IFMGA Mountain Guide

[MCR] Selkirk Mountains - Rogers Pass - Albert Icefields Mar 7/11

A bit of old news here perhaps, as it is presently snowing outside my window again, but here is what I have been seeing in the Albert Icefields area as well as a quick tour of the Asulkan valley in Rogers Pass on Tuesday Mar.7th.

 

Basically it is a great snowpack (about time!) and the ski quality has been amazing. My major concerns right now are southerly aspects where the Feb.21 suncrust is now buried at least 60-70cms – from what I have seen and been hearing, this is the most active layer out there and is currently capable of producing size 2.5-3.0 avalanches.

 

It seems that this crust is limited to steeper aspects in Treeline and Alpine terrain and is somewhat variable depending on a mix of aspect and incline – I have basically been avoiding this issue by staying off those aspects – easy when the crust is on the surface and the skiing sucks – but trickier when you get a new snow dump (like today and tomorrow) and the skiing is better.

 

My other major concerns is the recent soft cornice formation from last week’s wind and snow, which will likely continue to develop with these next systems.

 

Other than that, Mar.7th I noticed on the Youngs Peak Headwall as well as the very top of Mt. Leda’s East face, a very hard buried windslab that the upper snow was having difficulty adhering to in the very steepest part (45 egrees) – though this old buried windslab is widespread it does not appear to be a major issue except in these exceptionally steep areas where it has remained exposed from sluffing and is very hard (difficult to even kick a step into).

 

Obviously we will have to watch the next storm and see how things bond in the short term – especially since they are forecasting some significant winds for the next couple of days.

 

Have a great winter!

 

Cheers,

Scott Davis

ACMG/IFMGA Mountain Guide

[MCR] Lady killer

> Hi All
> Just a heads up for the ice climbing community. There was a near miss on Lady killer the yesterday. I heard it 2nd hand but some details are on the CAA incident site. No shovels, probes or transceivers on site.
> 3 climbers involved sounds like 2 burials but all recovered and OK.
> The climb is mostly south facing a great place to climb when it is cold but not when the temps are rising and there is lots of snow!! Like yesterday.
> This is not going to help our access issues in the canyon as it closed the Highway for a couple of hours.
> I am thankful though that no one was seriously injured. The sun is higher now heads up out there.
> Cheers
> Todd Craig, MG
_______________________________________________
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: Murchison Falls and Parkway Avi Obs

Rockies: Murchison Falls and Icefield Parkway avalanche observations
(March 8)

-20C at Murchison Falls this morning made for hard, fracturing ice
until the sun hit the route at 1pm, which helped to soften up the
surface enabling one swing sticks on the last pitch (finally). There
is a big hanging icicle to the left of the top of the route which
would cause some damage if it decided to collapse while climbers were
on the lower pitches.

The bowl at the base of the route is sporting a hard wind/spindrift
slab. We didn't get any whoophing (as reported last week on gravsports-
ice.com) but we were happy to have the avi gear with us (beacon, probe
and shovel). Remnants of an old small (size .5) loose snow avalanche
is obvious scouring across the approach trail about 50m before the
climb.

During our drive past Waterfowl Lake this morning (approx. 7am), we
observed two fairly large (size 2-2.5) avalanches pour down the east
faces of Mt. Chephren and Mt. Epaulette. Both started from the summit
rocks that were basking in the early morning sunrise. The one on
Chephren completely engulfed The Wild Thing and The Wild Thing Direct.

Sean Isaac
ACMG Alpine 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] Howson Range / Burnie Glacier Chalet

Four days into a week up at Burnie Glacier Chalet.

Yesterday we ventured up the Burnie Step (an imposing feature
approaching 50 degrees), skis on the whole way up. We continued up the
Burnie Glacier and into the S. Telkwa and did a couple of gentle
glacier runs. Excellent conditions throughout the day, with deep
powder skiing down the Burnie Step. The high alpine (e.g. mountain
tops, steep exposed faces, cols) has had a fair bit of wind but it was
still easy to find great skiing.

Last night the weather came in. Currently we have about 25cm (and
still snowing) adding to 15cm storm snow from the past week. These
layers are bonding well to the previous low density 30cm from 110303
which in turn is bonding well to the underlying surfaces. No
persistent week layers appear to be present in this snowpack.

On lower elevation S aspects there is a thin sun crust that formed
yesterday afternoon. Skiing on Tom George Mtn today was nonetheless
sensational -- the soft crust is well buried by now -- and we almost
went for a fourth 700m run it was so good! But beer and munchies won
the debate.

We are calling stability Fair in the alpine with a caution for
windloading on NE-N-NW aspects and crossloaded features, and G at
Treeline and below. Considering the additional 20-30cm snow in the
forecast this could change quickly, especially with much wind, but so
far only light to occasionally moderate winds from the south. Hazard
is Considerable in Alpine, Moderate at Treeline, Good Below treeline.

Regards,
Tom Wolfe
Mountain Guide ACMG/IFMGA
Canmore, AB
_______________________________________________
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, Glenmorangie

We climbed Glenmorangie today, March 7th. It's a great route and in
good shape right now. A good trail leads to the climb from the Yoho
Vally parking lot.

Like other parties we traversed right about 10 meters from the top of
the right hand, grade 3, approach to Twisted. A prominent dihedral
there leads via some mixed and thin ice to the continuous ice
systems. This first pitch (65 meters) protected well with a set of
Black Diamond Camalots .4 - 4 and ice screws (13 cm and 16 cm).

The second pitch was started from and ice balcony at the bottom right
side of the steep upper ice. We took the steepest, crux, section on
the far left against the rock. A gear search granted 3 nuts, 1
knifeblade piton, and a 10 cm screw (It may be more straight forward
to climb this pitch via the pillar on the right side).

We descended the route in two rappels from abalakovs.

Happy trails,

Barry Blanchard
Mountain Guide
www.barryblanchard.ca
www.yamnuska.com

[MCR] Howson Range/Burnie Glacier Chalet

Finished the second day of a week at the Burnie Glacier Chalet today.
Excellent skiing on 30cm low density snow from the storm last
Thurs/Friday. This snow is almost completely undisturbed high into the
alpine and has sloughed off steep faces > 45 degrees. Pleasant
temperatures around -8C and virtually no wind for the past few days.

The new snow underlies a widespread very hard (30cm) windslab from the
fierce winds/storm of Feb 25/26. This windslab appears to have bonded
well to the underlying facets.

No recent (<3 days) avalanches observed and only isolated avalanches
from during this past storm, mainly on steep South facing aspects. One
ski cut yesterday produced only a very small slab off a steep,
specific windloaded feature.

We have been skiing steep but smaller alpine features 40-50 degrees
(e.g. North Face Loft Peak direct, Mitre Col) and overall conditions
are fantastic. 3+m of snow on the glaciers (don't have a long enough
probe).

As of today we are calling Stability Good at all elevations and Hazard
Moderate (Alpine & Treeline) and Low (Below Treeline).

Regards,
Tom Wolfe

--
Tom Wolfe
Mountain Guide ACMG/IFMGA
Canmore, AB
_______________________________________________
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, Ice Nine

Got chased away from Ice Nine yesterday by a size 1 slough that ran over Happy Days while my buddy was finishing the first pitch of Ice Nine. Several centimeters of overnight snow on the highway. A coldish -20 something morning with consistent light snow fall as we approached (less than 1 cm/hr). Calm air, no wind. The approach gully has deep debris from large avalanches. Blue ice chunks from ice collapses, of what I assumed was Happy Days, sitting on the surface. We observed a number of small sloughs cleaning off of the mountain before the size 1 roared over Happy Days and we ran away.

Looks like the second pitch of Ice Nine is probably the crux right now. The first pitch is fractured at the roof level, but has frozen over on the front side. 

Happy trails,

Barry Blanchard

Mountain Guide

www.barryblanchard.ca

www.yamnuska.com

Fracture at the roof of pitch 1

Sloughing over Happy Days 10 minutes before the size 1.

[MCR] King Creek Ice Climbs

Staff training day today in King Creek. All the ice climbs are in good shape at the moment, and the ice was suprisingly not brittle given the amount of cold weather we have recently had. Rapid warming through the day with temperatures near -23 at 9:00am and close to 0 degrees at noon. This temperature change and the steady winds produced a lot of sluffing from the gullies and side walls in the canyon. One gully with a north aspect produced a significant slide that hit the regular trail. This slide certainly could have knocked a person over and easily buried them, as it covered the entire gully and actually crossed the creek a short distance. Keep a close eye on these gullies in the next few days if you are heading up the canyon. It is prudent to travel one at a time through these terrain features and keep a keen eye on the terrain above you. If really warm temperatures and windy conditions prevail, it may be worth avoiding this area all together, or at least consider the use of a transeiver, shovel and probe.
 
Play safe.

Jeremy Mackenzie
ACMG/IFMGA Mountain Guide
Kananaskis Country Public Safety

[MCR] Rogers Pass

I returned yesterday from 10 days at Rogers Pass.

At the start of the trip we had excellent skiing (except on steep
SE-SW and due S aspects up to 2300m which had thin sun crusts) and
good stability. Early last week strong winds from N blew around 10-15
cm of storm snow creating hard and fairly reactive but small and thin
slabs on S aspects. The winds pretty much ruined the alpine snow but
sheltered treeline and below zones still produced excellent ski
quality.

We skied up to 48 degree alpine features taking care towards the end
of the week with the lee windslabs. Of note, steep N aspects we skied
(>40 deg) had thin and facetted snowpacks. We had fast sloughing in
the 10-15cm storm snow from the week on top of these surfaces.

Yesterday things changed dramatically with 30cm+ storm snow falling on
the 10cm storm snow from the previous week and moderate winds from the
South. I broke heavy trail up to 2100m on Teddy Bear Trees and enjoyed
excellent ski quality, even on the steep sun crusted aspects, albeit
with fast and hard sloughing. Steep exposed areas (e.g. Grizzly Bowl
direct lines) appeared to have had a natural cycle -- very soft slab
over the facets and sun crusts.

Tom

--
Tom Wolfe
Mountain Guide ACMG/IFMGA
Canmore, AB
_______________________________________________
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] Kootenays - Valkyr Range

Just finished a week at Valkyr Lodge (south of Nakusp and west of the Valhalla Range). Primary concerns over the week were isolated areas of hard wind slab from a strong NE wind event mid-week, three weak surface hoar layers in the top meter, and large cornices.

Yesterday we had a significant storm, which started with moderate southwest winds all night and ended in the morning with a calm snowfall that put down close to 30 cm of snow in just a couple of hours (at one point I measured that it was snowing 9 cm per hour). We flew out at about noon and saw many avalanches on NE slopes, mostly soft slabs that I suspect were windslabs from the storm and/or failing on a surface hoar layer that would now be buried down about 40-50 cm. Avalanche sizes were 1.5 - 2.

Mark Klassen

Mountain Guide