April 4, 2018

    AVALANCHE ACTIVITY:

    An avalanche has killed a Norwegian on the Kungsleden Trail, Sweden. Article below.   Net Pic

    Locally, some cornice trimming with Sz 2 Debris.


    YESTERDAY:

    Snowing to the valley Tuesday morning, snowline at 700 meters.

    Alta Lake is beginning to break up.

    A few breaks in the afternoon.

    If you know the snow, life is good!!

    Chainsaw Ridge.

    Steeps were skiing well.

    Awesome turns in Crystal zone amongst the trees.

    Tuesday afternoon.

    Big picture on Tuesday.



Weather Observations for April 4, 2018  taken at 06:00 Hours.

2180 meters     -9, Winds were 5-10 KPH SW--Whistler Peak
1835 meters     -7, Winds were 5-10 KPH SW--Roundhouse
1660 meters     -6, 1 cm of new, 1 cm in 24 hrs  Base 299 cm --Pig Alley

  660 meters      0, Valley Temp, Max Temp Yesterday was +5.9, 0.2 mm of precip recorded yest

    As of 07:00 Hrs this am we have broken cloud and unlimited visibility.




FORECAST:

Unsettled this morning before a weak warm frontal band brings overcast skies with periods of light snow fall in a Westerly flow aloft. The freezing level will rise to around 1500 meters today dropping back down to about 1200 meters tonight. More of the same on Thursday with the FL creeping up to 1900 meters. Same pattern for Friday with the FL topping out at around 2000 meters. Saturday will see a more vigorous front with slightly more precipitation and the FL reaching 2000 meters.
Guesstimates: 1-3 cm by Thursday morning, 5-10 cm by Friday morning above 1650 meters, 2-6 cm by Saturday morning above 1650 meters.

    GOES IR image from this am.

     Low will be the winner today, High will push warmer temps into our zone.

    Unsettled this am.

    Cloudier this pm.

    Fronts along the coast.

    Warm front for tomorrow.

    Followed by a cold front.

INFORMATION & OBSERVATIONS:

    Stellars, rimed stellars, and graupel.

    Cornices in the treeline.

    Top of Glacier Express.

    Dry and light for April!!

    Many ripe cornices developing, will be interesting when it warms up.

    Frosted old man's beard.



ARTICLES:

An avalanche has killed a Norwegian on the Kungsleden Trail: Sweden

The Science of Snow: Revelstoke Review

Backcountry Travellers-Easily triggered Soft Slab Avalanches: NF News

Avalanche Forecasters grapple with a deadly season: Washington State

Avalanches--The Ever Present Danger: Born2Climb

April 3, 2018

    AVALANCHE ACTIVITY:

    Loose dry point releases during last storm.

    Steeper terrain was sluffing.

    Avalanche activity near Birkenhead Lake Monday.                                          Shin Campos Image

     North East aspect.                                                                                               Shin Campos Image

    Wide propigation.                                                                                                 Shin Campos Image



    YESTERDAY:

    Blue bird morning early Monday.

    New snow!!

    Clouds to the South in the am.

    Snow on reverse loaded slopes was skiing well.

    Busy in the backcountry.

    Awesome conditions on the right aspect and elevation.

    Eventually some clouds moved into the area in the afternoon.

    Clouds thickened quickly.

    Overcast by 18:00 Hrs.

    Monday afternoon.

    Big picture Monday.


Weather Observations for April 3, 2018  taken at 06:00 Hours.

2180 meters    -10, Winds were 15-50 KPH S  --Whistler Peak
1835 meters      -9, Winds were 15-25 KPH SE--Roundhouse
1660 meters      -7, 2 cm of new, 2 cm in 24 hrs  Base 299 cm --Pig Alley

  660 meters       0, Valley Temp, Max Temp Yesterday was +7.4, 0.0 mm of precip recorded yest

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



FORECAST:

A weak frontal band in a Westerly flow aloft will bring periods of light snowfall to the area today under overcast skies. The FL will rise to around 1200 meters during the day dropping back down to surface tonight. This pattern will continue into Wednesday and there is a chance of some breaks Wednesday afternoon, before a warm front begins to push through into Thursday. Milder temperatures will bring the FL above the weather plots on Wednesday and Thursday. Friday and Saturday have the potential for some decent amounts of snow above 1200 meters.
Guesstimates: 2-4 cm by Wednesday morning, trace-1 cm by Thursday morning, 8-12 cm by Friday morning above 1500 meters, 1-3 cm by Saturday morning, with 5 mm possible abve 1650 meters.

    GOES IR image from this am.

    Low to the North, High to the South, Arctic front to the East.

    Flurries for today.

    Overcast.

    Fronts along the coast.

    Overcast.

    Warm front approaching.


     INFORMATION & OBSERVATIONS:

    Surface Hoar development.

    Some areas were wind affected.

    Snow was deep on some aspects.

    Recent damage from an avalanche several weeks ago.

    There were signs of slabby snow in some areas.

    A pleasnat April Day.

    Sz 1 NA.


Recent Avalanche Canada MIN Reports:

Russet & Addit Ridges

Marriot Basin



ARTICLES:

Renowned Mountain Doctor killed in French Avalanche: Dr. Verticle

The Hazards of Snowmobiling on a Glacier or Icefield: Mountain Sledder

Ice Free Arctic summers could hinge on small climate warming range: Science Daily

The underlying causes of Tibetan Ice Avalanches: Nature

CAA Spring Meetings: April 30-May 4, 2018