December 7, 2014

    Woke up to freezing rain at 700 meters. Temperature in the valley at -1 early Dec 6, 2014.

    There was a reason there was no telemetry from 1835 meters yesterday morning.

    A few wacks, a little love and it was working by 10:00 Hours Saturday morning.

    Early Bird Social attracted 50 women for an awesome day of learning! Snowed 5 cm at 1650 Yest.

    Size 1 Sa, unless they ski cut it?, No control work in the temporary boundary. Be cautious!!

    Perfect snowball material Saturday afternoon at 1870 meters. Moist and -2.



Weather observations for December 2, 2014, taken at 06:00 Hours this am.

2240 meters      -5, Winds were 15-25 KPH from the SSE
2180 meters      -3, Winds were 25-35 KPH from the SSE
1860 meters      -3, Winds were 5-10 KPH from the E
1835 meters      -1, Winds were 10-20 KPH from the SSE
1650 meters      -1, Trace of new snow, 5 cm in 24 Hours Base 52 cm
1550 meters      -1, Relative Humidity 99%

  660 meters     +1, Valley Temp, Max Temp Yest +1.4, 10.5 mm of Precip recorded

    As of 06:45 we have valley cloud, high level clouds, no precipitation and unlimited visibility.


For the forecast, the upper level ridge and low level offshore flow will bring drier conditions for today. Last night the valley experienced some moisture while the upper mountain was dry and cold. A weak front will pass through our zone this evening with a short impulse of precipitation, a freezing level near the upper elevations, with moderate rain fall.  Monday will be cloudy with light precipitation during the day, with a lowering freezing level to around 1700 meters by the evening, then a very moist Southwest flow begins to affect our area until Wednesday evening. Another atmospheric river is on its way!! Forecasted freezing levels have been dropping slightly so we can only hope that it will snow at the mid mountain level. The majority of the precipitation will likely fall to the South of our zone. We could see 70-90 cm of snow by Wednesday night from mid mountain up. More on that in tomorrows post.  

    Satellite image from Noon yesterday!

    Big picture, looks like some decent moisture is on its way.

    Short lived precipitation event Sunday evening into Monday.

    Tuesday's Front is looking fairly juicy.




ARTICLES & YOU TUBE:

AST Courses offered by one of my sponsors: Canada West Mountain School

Antarctica Heat comes from the Deep: Science Daily

Annapurna Avalanche: You Tube

13 Things you did not know about snow: DNews

Weather to Ski: We Know Snow

Squeaky bum time for French Resorts: Pistehors.com

    Beacon review with the Early Bird Social. Awesome to see so many keen backcountry enthusiasts.

    Yesterday afternoon the snow stopped and a drier air mass moved in.

    Track down Cougar yesterday afternoon.

    Learning how to shovel snow efficiently. Conveyor Method.

December 6, 2014

    Early Friday morning, nice to see the snow down to the valley!!

    Warm air did move into the mid mountain elevation but cold air remained above and below.

    Moist snow above 1000 meters and below 1700 meters.

    Great man made snow on lower Olympic run on Whistler.

    Drier conditions by days end. December 5, 2014.


Weather observations for December 6, 2014, taken at 06:00 Hours this am.

2240 meters      -3, Winds were 40-55 KPH from the SSE
2180 meters      -2, Winds were 30-45 KPH from the SSE
1860 meters      -1, Winds were 15-25 KPH from the E
1835 meters       0, Winds were calm
1650 meters     +1, 1 cm of new snow, Base 52 cm
1550 meters     +1, Relative Humidity 100%, 7 cm of new snow,  Base 37 cm

  660 meters      -1, Valley Temp, Max Temp Yest -2.4, 2.4 mm or precip recorded

    As of 06:45 it was snowing at 1860 meters with obscured skies and limited visibility. 


A size 1 natural avalanche originating on steep terrain was observed yesterday morning, be sure to check out the Local Avalanche Advisory in the tabs at the top of the page. The freezing level rose to 2100 meters early yesterday evening and has dropped to 1800 meters early this morning. Approximately 10 cm of new snow above 1800 meters.

For the Forecast, light snowfall-to flurries this morning as an upper trough moves through, before an upper level ridge brings drier conditions this afternoon into Sunday. A weak front is expected to arrive Sunday evening into Monday. A couple of vigorous fronts in a Southwest flow will arrive Monday evening  for Tuesday and another on Wednesday. Freezing levels are looking better with a spike above 2000 meters on Sunday evening. For the most part they should be hovering between 1400 and 1800 in the next few days. Guesstimates as of today, they will change by tomorrow: 5-10 cm on Tuesday morning, 20-30 cm by Wednesday morning. 30-40 cm by Thursday morning.

    Satellite image for this am.

    Looking pretty dry later today.

    Front expected on Monday Night.

    Windy and wet just prior to a cold front arriving on Wednesday Night.


ARTICLES:


Whats in Your back pack: Snow Japan Forums

World Cup Races in France cancelled: Sportsnet

Coast Mountain Backcountry Report: Escape Route

Understanding Travel Behaviour in Avalanche Terrain: Research Project Needs You

    Was impressive to come out of the moist air mass into a carpet of dry man made.

    One of the new high tech snow guns.

    Did several top to bottoms on both mountains yesterday. Felt good to get the legs working.

    Snow to the valley in the morning was excellent until the warm air moved in mid mountain..

December 5, 2014

    First light Thursday morning, the weak front began to creep into our zone.

    By the afternoon it was beginning to thicken.

    Temperatures remained cold enough to blow snow in the valley. December 4, 2014.

    Wind skin at 2000 meters on North Aspects.

    Just before sunset, Thursday afternoon.


Weather observations for December 5, 2014, taken at 06:00 Hours this am.

2240 meters      -4, No wind data
2180 meters      -3, Winds were 20-30 KPH from the S
1860 meters      -2, Winds were 20-30 KPH from the E
1835 meters   -0.5, Winds were 10-20 KPH from the SSE
1650 meters       0, 7 cm of new snow, Base 58 cm
1550 meters       0, Relative Humidity 99%

  660 meters      -4, Valley Temp, Max Temp Yest -3, 1.8 mm of Precip Yest

    As of 06:45 we have broken skies, variable visibility, light winds, and no precipitation.



For the Forecast, a weak warm front in a Southwest flow aloft will bring very light precipitation to the area today.(Flurries)  A slightly stronger front will bring more precipitation Friday evening. Appears to be  bit of a drying trend over the weekend, before another weak front arrives on Monday. Next week will bring a series of stronger fronts to the South Coast. Guesstimates; 4-8 cm by Saturday morning above 1800 meters, 10-15 cm by Tuesday morning above 1700 meters, 20-30 cm by Wednesday morning above 1700 meters. Hoping these values may drop by a few hundred meters as we get closer to the event. Freezing levels will be in a yo yo pattern over the weekend, fluctuating between 1500 meters to 2000 meters, the higher values are short lived.

    Front was upon us by Thursday afternoon.

    Lots of moisture out in the Pacific.

    
Warming will possibly take the Freezing Level to 2000 meters briefly Friday night. 

    Another impulse of moisture this evening with FL near 2000 meters.

    Deep low affecting our zone Monday-Thursday, moist and windy conditions can be expected.


Video Fridays:

Short discussions on Avalanche Related Topics: ASARC, U of C 

Harvesting Christmas Trees with a Bell 206: Amazing Pilot

How not to evacuate a chairlift: In need of some Geometry and Physics Training

World Record Ski Jump: 223.5 Meters




Articles:


Henery's Avalanche Talk: Blog

Safe as Her: Powder

Deep Winter Photo Contest gives back: Avalanche Canada

Avalanche Airbag Backpack Overview: Backcountry Skiing Blog

   Spotted this Ermine on Blackcomb Yesterday. Here is some info on the critter: Ermine

    Lots of folks out in the backcountry.

    Cornices will really be growing next week!!

   A variety of cloud formations on Thursday.

    Facets in shallow rocky terrain, North aspect.

December 4, 2014

    Size 3 out of Ipsoot South.                                                                            John Furneaux Photo

Purchased tickets to the opening gala of the Whistler Film Festival well in advance to be sure to have seats for myself and 2 guests. Denied at the door!! Sold out. Tough luck!! Met a lady who had travelled from Toronto on an Industry Pass denied access also. One of my friends is livid, will not support this festival for a long time, can you blame him as a local supporting the event for many years.  Trying to promote an event in a World Class Resort and not delivering is unacceptable and beyond belief. This sort of behaviour would not occur at any recognized film festival, in any other venue around the world. I have been a supporter since day 1. Appalling management. There were many unhappy ticket holders.

    First light Wednesday morning.

    Temperatures in the valley remained cold yesterday.

    Pumping it out on the lower mountain.

    Cirrus clouds formed in the late morning.

    Sunset was officially at 16:12 0n December 3, 2014.




Weather observations for December 4, 2014, taken at 06:00 Hours this am.

2240 meters      -4, No wind data
2180 meters      -3, Winds were 10-15 KPH from the S
1860 meters      -2, Winds were 0-5 KPH from the SSE
1835 meters      -2, Winds were 5-10 KPH from the SSE
1650 meters      -3, No new snow, Base 50 cm
1550 meters      -1, Relative Humidity 72% Base 30 cm

  660 meters      -9, Valley Temp, Max Temp Yest -1.4

For the forecast, the pattern is finally changing, with a Southwest flow bringing clouds and some moisture to our area. Unfortunately, the air mass is fairly warm rising freezing levels to around 1600 meters. Clear skies this morning with increasing cloud cover through out the day with light snow above 1200 meters later this evening. Freezing levels will continue to rise and hover around 1900 meters on Friday. Mostly cloudy on Saturday with the freezing level dropping back down to around 1400 meters. Sunday is looking unsettled and then we can expect a series of warm frontal bands with moderate to heavy precipitation into mid week. Guesstimates 2-4 cm by Friday morning, 3-5 cm by Saturday morning. 

    Clear skies, some cirrus cloud about with unlimited visibility. Clouds on the way. 06:45 this am.

    Hopefully the low in the Gulf of Alaska kicks in and brings us some Love!!

Long range models are showing significant precipitation next week.

With the right mix next week we have potential for some good storms.

    A series of strong Pacific Frontal systems generated by the deep upper low in the NE Pacific expected.



ARTICLES: 


Top 5 places to split board the back country NOW: Teton Gravity's View

 Carson Pass, California: Sketchy Ride in a Slide

And then it Bites: The Human Factor

Jackson Hole supporting a great event: Avalanche Awareness Night

Effects of electronics on your avalanche transceiver: WePowder

    Man made snow will collect on everything. Fences and signs are fair game.

     Some point releases on a South West aspect yesterday afternoon.

    Awesome light at days end, December 3, 2014.

    Surface Hoar is still growing.

    Early conditions and little room at the bottom of the terrain park on the road is an issue, slow down!!