February 13, 2016

    Short lived break in the action early Friday morning, February 12, 2016.

    Tracks speak for themselves. Below 1500 meters.

    Snowing lightly early yesterday morning.

    70 KPH winds as the front pushed through around noon yesterday (1835M). 102 KPH at 2240 M.

    30 cm of moist powder at 2000 meters in lee terrain.

    Power flurry at the top of the Solar Coaster in the afternoon.

    Wet avalanche debris on Cougar Chutes from Xe. Size 1-2 Xe & Sc during control work yesterday.

Weather Observations for February 13, 2016: taken at 06:00 Hours.

2240 meters     -6, Winds were 25-40 KPH SSE  --Horstman Hut Station
2180 meters     -6, Winds were 30-40 KPH S       --Whistler Peak
1860 meters     -6, Winds were 15-25   KPH SE  --Rendevous
1835 meters     -4, Winds were 20-40 KPH SSE  --Roundhouse
1650 meters     -3, 8 cm of new snow, 13 cm in 24 hrs, 242 cm Base, RH 93%  --Pig Alley
1550 meters     -2, 6 cm of new snow,   8 cm in 24 hrs, 185 cm Base, RH 93%  --Catskinner 

  660 meters    +3, Valley Temp, Max Temp Yesterday was +5.4. 18 mm of Precip recorded

    As of 07:00 Hrs this am we have overcast skies, unlimited visibility & it is snowing very lightly.


Avalanche control on WB yesterday produced Sz 1-2 ssl above 2000 meters and wet slabs and loose avalanches below. Sc, Xe, and Xc with a few large cornice releases noted.

For the forecast, the upper level trough will move East this morning with the next slow warm front on its heels. We can expect periods of light snow fall  today with the FL hovering in the 1000 meter range. Marine layer may cause some visibility issues in the lower elevations. The moist westerly flow will continue for the next few days with fluctuations in the FL. Range is not terrible with lows of 1500 meters and highs of 1800 meters. Sunday and Monday will see a weak warm front move through with light precipitation. A wetter frontal wave arrives for Monday evening with heavy snow forecasted above 1500 meters. Tuesday at his time shows a weaker front with light precipitation during the day and moderate snowfall in the evening. There is little agreement amongst the models beyond Tuesday so stand by!! Guesstimates: 8-10 cm by Sunday morning, 4-6 cm by Monday morning, 20-30 cm by Tuesday morning.

    Overcast for today with light snowfall.

    Very slow moving front Sunday.

    Moist West flow for Monday and Tuesday.

    Still early but cooler moist flow from the Northwest Wednesday and Thursday.



ARTICLES:

Managing your Human Factors: Joe Stock

How do you rescue someone buried in an avalanche: ScienceABC

A much delayed DRDO Tech could have saved Soldiers: India

Avalanche Airbag Waist Belt Mods: WildSnow.com

Time lapse camera mounted at Bridger Bowl, Montana: Captures skiers near an avalanche

Using cold coffee in your full profile: Coffeepooling

    09:45 yesterday morning, power flurry was in progress when this image was captured..

    Mellow looking for tomorrow. Light snowfall.

    Next series of frontal bands in the moist westerly flow on there way.

    The model was correct on the frontal passage but the winds were off.

    Cool cornice formation Teetering Left.

    Some light was getting through yesterday morning.

    Power Flurry with the frontal passage.

    Pig alley received 5 cm yesterday morning, 13 cm in 24 Hours. Another 8 last night.

    Still some decent turns in the moist pow.

    Snowing at 1500 meters yesterday afternoon.

February 12, 2016

    Sunrise Thursday, February 11, 2016. Rainbow Mountain taken at 07:35 Hours.

    Overcast with unlimited visibility in the morning.

    Best turns were at the bottom of the mountain, softer with no traffic.

    Clear to the North in the morning.

    Pre frontal clouds later in the am just before noon.

    Started snowing in the alpine around 13:30 Hours.

    Snowing 1.5 cm per hour at 16:00 Hours down to 1100 meters, at sweep!!



Weather Observations for February 12, 2016: taken at 06:00 Hours.

2240 meters     -1, Winds were 30-50 KPH SSE  --Horstman Hut Station
2180 meters     -1, Winds were 25-50 KPH S       --Whistler Peak
1860 meters      0, Winds were 20-35 KPH ESE  --Rendevous
1835 meters      0, Winds were 15-30 KPH E       --Roundhouse
1650 meters    +1, 8 cm of new snow, 8 cm in 24 hrs, 232 cm Base, RH 100%  --Pig Alley
1550 meters      0, 9 cm of new snow, 9 cm in 24 hrs, 182 cm Base, RH 100%    --Catskinner 

  660 meters    +1, Valley Temp, Max Temp Yesterday was +6.1. 4.3 mm of Precip recorded

    As of 07:00 Hours this am we have overcast skies with variable visibility, and it is snowing lightly.

For the forecast, a weak cold front in a Westerly flow will bring light snowfall to the area during the day with a good possibility of moderate snowfall overnight. The FL peaked briefly at 1900 meters early in the morning descending to around 1000 meters by the evening, as an upper trough in a Westerly flow pushes into the area. We should see periods of light snowfall during the day Saturday. A warmer moist front follows on Saturday night/Sunday with the FL starting at around 1400 meters slowly rising to 1900 meters by early Monday morning. At this time a vigorous warm front moves onshore for Monday with the evening receiving the bulk of the precipitation and the FL hovering around 1900 meters. The three W's come into play for Monday (Wet Warm Windy) with some cooling expected by Tuesday with yet more precipitation. Time will tell!! Guesstimates: 10-15 cm by Saturday morning, 5-10 cm by Sunday morning, 5-8 cm by Monday morning above 1700 meters. Estimates for Monday and Tuesday are a bit high as of now, with 60-80 cm possible in the alpine.

    Bulk of the moisture went through early this morning, looks like a bit of snow for tonight.

 Cold front moving through this morning.

    Cooler Westerly flow for Saturday.

    Cool upper level trough for Saturday followed by a warmer  moist Westerly flow.



Warmish Westerly flow for Sunday.

   Monday into Tuesday is looking juicy, starts warm finishes colder. Stand by for updates.




VIDEO FRIDAY:

Cascading Avalanche footage: Mt. Rundel, Alberta

Large avalanche in La Grave: France

Patience is a Virtue: Montana

The best of the FWT: Chamonix

Track Setting: AMGA

Spine Avalanche: James Heim





ARTICLES:

Indian Soldier succumbs to his injuries after 6 day avalanche burial: New Delhi

Best: Be aware of Avalanches: WyomingNews

Rare weather event produces spontaneous snowballs: Idaho

A behind the scenes look at avalanche mitigation at Aropahoe Basin: Colorado

The rising trend of Ski Patrol Unions and what it means for skiing: PowderMagazine

Tree Well video shows Dad pulling son out of a tree well: Idaho

    Approximately 10:00 Hours yesterday, very slow moist warm front just reaching the Coast .

     Image from early yesterday afternoon.

    Big picture, there is some moisture out there.

    Front moved in from the south, pushing a weak high to the North.

    -2.5 at 1860 meters just after noon with no wind.

    Raining moderately in the valley at 18:00 Hours, last night.

February 11, 2016

    Another article below on the Duffy Lake avalanche at the Wendy Thompson Hut: Chris Mauer Pic

    Avalanche? Not very steep. Snow cat snow farming? Perhaps! Any other photos? Vaujany, FR.

    Breaks in the cloud Wednesday morning, February 10, 2016.

    Warm front was on its way early Wednesday morning--08:00 Hours.

   A sign of the times and what is on the way!!

    Snow began to fall at around 09:00 hours.

    Snowline was at around 1500 meters in the am, up to 1700 meters by the afternoon.


Weather Observations for February 11, 2016: taken at 06:00 Hours.

2240 meters     -5, Winds were 5-10 KPH NE  --Horstman Hut Station
2180 meters     -6, Winds were 8-12 KPH NE  --Whistler Peak
1860 meters      0, Winds were 0-5   KPH SE  --Rendevous
1835 meters     -1, Winds were 5-15 KPH NE   --Roundhouse
1650 meters     -2, 0 cm of new snow, 1 cm in 24 hrs, 230 cm Base, RH 100%  --Pig Alley
1550 meters     -2, 0 cm of new snow, 0 cm in 24 hrs, 185 cm Base, RH 90%    --Catskinner 

  660 meters    +1, Valley Temp, Max Temp Yesterday was +6.1. 4.3 mm of Precip recorded

   As of 07:00 Hrs we have mostly cloudy skies and unlimitted visibility.



For the forecast, a brief break in the series of frontal waves in a dry Northerly flow for this morning. Another warm front by this afternoon in a moist Southwest flow, with a trailing weak cold front early Friday, with light/moderate precipitation into Friday. The FL will likely rise to around 1900 meters with the approach of the warm front then gradually descend to around 1000 meters by Friday night. Similar scenario to last Fridays storm with a little less precipitation. An upper level trough pushes through for Saturday with a much cooler air mass and light intermittent snow during the day. Models are beginning to agree on the long term outlook. The long fetch of moisture heading our way may not be as warm as first forecasted. Even with the possible intense front approaching for Monday the FL may spike to 1800 meters for a brief period then bring lots of snow to the alpine, by Tuesday. Guesstimates: 10-15 cm by Friday morning, 15-20 cm by Saturday morning, 8-10 cm by Sunday morning.

    Break before the next front moves onshore this afternoon.

    Southwesterly flow for today into tomorrow.

    Southerly flow for Friday with light precip in the morning changing to Moderate by the evening.

     Cooling off Friday night. Upper level trough begins to move in, Westerly flow.

    Upper level trough for Saturday in a Westerly flow.

   Another front for Sunday, coming in cold leaving warm, before a very active front on Monday.

ARTICLES:

Another article on  the Avalanche involvement at the Wendy Thompson Hut: CBCNews

Indian Soldiers condition worsens after avalanche rescue: New Delhi

Skiing on a High Avy Danger Day: BackcountryMagazine

Youth Culture: AvalancheGeeks

Why avalanche victims get publicly shamed-And why they shouldn't: Teton Gravity

Very Close Call-Snowmobiler hopes video raises awareness for snow safety: CTV News

    Yesterdays image taken just before 11:00 Hrs, snowing at 1860 meters.

    Big picture yesterday morning.

    Approaching front. Wednesday, February 10, 2016.

    Line up at the pumps.

 

    Wet snow at 11:00 Hours, -1--Winds 25-50 KPH at 1860 meters.