November 20, 2013

November 20, 2013; Great looking day, -9 in the valley as of 06:00 hours this am. 

Some clouds still lingering this am but should dissipate this morning.

Dress warm today if venturing out in the mountains, -15 but calm winds at 2200 meters.

Nice to see the snow level moving down to the valley.

Sunrise yesterday morning, nice day with some flurries. Heard the skiing was nice.

Image for Wednesday.

These observations were taken at 06:00 hrs this 20Th day of November, 2013.

2180 meters  -15.5, winds calm
1835 meters  -14,    winds 5-10 KPH from the SSW
1650 meters  -14,    2 cm new snow,  12 cm in 24 Hrs, base 76 cm
  660 meters  -9,      valley temperature, 1 mm precip yesterday


A high pressure ridge is building off the coast of Vancouver Island and will slowly move inland early next week. Northwest flow aloft will bring a cold dry air mass to our area Tuesday and Wednesday. By Thursday the air mass begins to warm up and some clouds will form but it will  remain dry. This trend will continue into the weekend with freezing levels  reaching 3000 + meters Saturday and Sunday.

The high will slowly move inland by the weekend.





Volkl Mantra, great ski: Classic Backcountry Ski

Natural Avalanches observed in Kananasksis Area: ACMG Blog

Avalanche Control has started on Kootney Pass: Kootney.com

No injuries in human-triggered avalanche near Marble , Colorado: Persistent Slabs

Too many people are venturing into the backcountry ill prepared. As the growth of the sport increases more people are making bad decisions without proper training or respect for the mountain environment.

In the wake of the two recent rescues involving skiers caught in avalanches, the Teton County Sheriff’s office has issued a reminder to back country users to more carefully select the terrain in which they ski. Additionally, the department urges in a recent media statement that those using the back country in the winter should consult the Bridger-Teton Avalanche Center website before going out. The department pointed out that the parties in both incidents were travelling in perceived “safe zones,” but in fact found themselves in very steep avalanche terrain, in known avalanche paths.  The statement goes on (quoting now), “Although the Teton County Search and Rescue team members are highly skilled, brave, and have excellent equipment, the types of rescues experienced in these two accidents present a significant risk to team members as well as [the contract] helicopter.

Hikers at the top of the Peak Chair yesterday would have had some nice powder turns.

Satellite image from yesterday afternoon.

The big picture from yesterday.