December 6, 2020

     YESTERDAY:

      Sunrise Saturday was at 07:55 Hrs. High scattered cloud with thick valley cloud. +2 at 2180 m.

      Saturday morning looking North.

      Fissile and Cowboy Ridge Saturday afternoon.

     Saturday December 5, 2020. 14:00 Hrs. +4 with a 15-30 KPH SE wind. -1 in the valley.

     Satellite image from the same timeframe.

      Frost in the fog layer that hung around above the valley all day.

Weather Observations for December 6, 2020 taken at 06:00 Hours.

2240 meters      -3, Winds were 60-75 KPH ESE--Horstman Hut

2180 meters      -3, Winds were 50-60 KPH S--Whistler Peak
1860 meters      -1, Winds were 20-40 KPH S --Rendezvous 

1835 meters      -1, Winds were 20-30 KPH SE--Round House

1650 meters       0, trace in 12 Hrs, trace in 24 Hrs, Base 88 cm --Pig Alley
1560 meters       0, trace in 12 Hrs, trace in 24 Hrs, Base 49 cm--Catskinner

  660 meters       0, Valley Temp, Max temp Yesterday was -0.2, 0.0 mm of precip yesterday.

      As of 07:00 Hrs this am we have overcast skies and unlimited visibility. Snowing very lightly.

FORECAST:

A weak frontal band arrived early this am with more on the way in a South-South Westerly flow aloft. We can expect periods of very light precipitation with the FL hovering in the 1600 meter range. Maybe slightly higher. (1800)  An active front arrives early Monday with light to moderate precipitation with the FL hovering in the 1500 meter range.  Depending on how this front lines up we could see as much as 30-50 mm by Tuesday morning with moderate to strong winds. Fingers crossed that the FL does not go much higher. Some models are calling for less, so time will tell. It dries out by Tuesday afternoon with overcast skies. Wednesday is looking unsettled as some weak ridging brings a drying trend. Another weak front on Thursday. Guesstimates: 5-10 cm above 1600 m by Monday morning, 25-45 cm above 1600 m by Tuesday am, 1-3 cm above 800 m by Wednesday am. 

     GOES IR image from this am.

      Weak frontal band for today with warm temperatures.

      More active front for Monday , wish it were cooler.

      Cooler by Tuesday with a drying trend.

      AVALANCHE ACTIVITY:

      No new avalanches were observed.

     Old debris on Whistler, different perspective of avalanche under the bomb tram.

      Old debris from an avalanche under Symphony Chair.

      Recent pinwheel. Very warm in the alpine for Early December. La Nina!!!

From The Sea to Sky Avalanche advisory:

No new avalanches were reported on Thursday or Friday, however pinwheeling on steep south and west aspects was reported.

Last Wednesday, a natural widespread wet loose avalanche cycle up to size 3 occurred. A cornice failure size 1.5 also occurred triggering a small surface slab on the slope below.

     INFORMATION & OBSERVATIONS:

      Looking through the fog Saturday am.

      Peak chair opened on Saturday.

      Serious glaze in the alpine.

      Good to see so many people taking courses.

     There were some good turns to be had on Saturday depending on aspect and elevation.

      There were even some good turns in the sastrugi.

     Mount Rainier in the background.  Awesome Bales                                             Doris Conley Image

LOCAL AVALANCHE MIN REPORTS:

Spearhead Glacier: Dec 5, 2020

Musical Bumps: Dec 5, 2020

Sentinel Ridge: Dec 5, 2020

VIDEOS:

Powder Picker Dec 5, 2020: David Jones

ARTICLES:

Program aims to reduce SAR calls in Revelstoke for snowmobilers: Revelstoke Review

Two men were involved in an avalanche near Voss: Norway

Heavy snow cancels Women's Super G Ski Race: Switzerland 

Avalanche conditions report from Austria: EAWS

CAIC Statewide Info: Instagram