March 3, 2021

     YESTERDAY:

      Sunrise was at 06:53 Hrs Tuesday am. -9 with a 32-42 KPH SE wind.

      Snow line was at around 1100 meters.

      Multiple cloud layers Tuesday am.

      There were patches of blue as well.

      Great snow in 7th Heaven.

      Nice turns in Horstman glacier.

      Fissile Peak

       There was some nice light in the am.

      Looking South.

      Valley cloud did lift in the early afternoon. Crystal Chair.

      Tuesday March 2, 2021. 14:00 Hrs. -7 with a 15-25 KPH SE wind. +3 in the valley.

     Satellite image from the same timeframe as above.

      Sunset was at 17:55 Hrs on Tuesday. 

Weather Observations for March 3, 2021 taken at 06:00 Hours.

2240 meters    -9, Winds were 20-30 KPH S--Horstman Hut

2180 meters    -8, Winds were 30-40 KPH S--Whistler Peak
1860 meters    -7, Winds were 10-20 KPH SE --Rendezvous 

1835 meters    -7, Winds were  20-30 KPH ESE--Round House

1650 meters    -7,  1 cm in 12 Hrs, 1 cm in 24 Hrs, Base 248 cm --Pig Alley
1570 meters    -7,  trace in 12 Hrs, trace in 24 Hrs, Base 178 cm--Catskinner

  660 meters    -2, Valley Temp, Max temp Yesterday was +3.9, 0.4 mm of precip yesterday.

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

FORECAST:

A weak stalled front will bring unsettled weather in a South Westerly flow aloft for today. The FL will likely climb to 1200 meters dropping down to around 1000 meters tonight. A mix of cloud and some sunny breaks today with possible flurries. Overcast by early Thursday morning with a wet windy warm front arriving before noon with light to moderate precipitation. The first impulse will end Thursday night with the next wave arriving early Friday morning. The FL will rise to 1500 meters on Thursday dropping slightly Friday am to around 1200 meters than back down to surface by Friday night with light to heavy precip. Saturday is looking mostly overcast with some flurries and some occasional sunny breaks. Guesstimates: 0-trace cm by Thursday am, 20-25 cm by Friday am, 25-30 cm by Saturday am, 1-4 cm by Sunday am.  

      GOES IR image from this am.

           Stalled front for today with unsettled weather. On the warmish side.

      South Westerly flow aloft.

Low will bring a vigorous front to the area Thursday afternoon. Warm air moving in from the South.

       Front pushes through on Friday with cooling temps by Friday night.

      Looks wet Friday.

     AVALANCHE ACTIVITY:

      Crown line above Source Lake in Washington State.                                Johnathan Spritzer Image

      Large avalanche at Source Lake, Washington State. Article below.           Jonathan Spritzer Image

     Crystal Mtn, WA limiting access to terrain after significant avalanche cycle. Article below. CMP Pic

      PWL at Crystal Mountain resort. Any intel from Stevens Pass?                                       CMSP Pic

      Avalanche mitigation on Whistler produced a few Sz1 storm slabs Xe. One Sz 2 Xc.

     Avalanche mitigation on Blackcomb produced a few Sz 1 loose dry Xe. Some Sz 1 cornice noses.

      Cornice control on Horstman Glacier. Watch out for cornice debris in Alpine bowls.

      Powder residue.

      Debris at the bottom of Ladies First.

      One of several bomb holes from explosive testing in Lakeside. No Results.

From Sea to Sky avalanche advisory:

Avalanche Summary

No new reports since Saturday when natural and human triggered avalanche activity quieted down but cornices continued to be reactive to explosives size 2-2.5. Minor pinwheeling was observed on steep solar aspects in the afternoon.

Snowpack Summary

20 cm of snow sits over a layer that may consist of of facets, spotty surface hoar, and/or crusts on steep solar aspects and below 1500 m. Recent wind of varying direction has blown this snow into wind slabs on a variety of aspects.

A weak layer buried in mid-February is composed of a crust, facets or spotty surface hoar depending on elevation/aspect, and is now down 50-80 cm. There have been no recent avalanches reported on this layer. Large triggers, such as an avalanche in motion, cornice fall, or intense loading from snow, wind and/or a rapid rise in temperature could awaken these deeper weak layers.

The mid and lower snowpack is well settled and strong in most areas.

      INFORMATION & OBSERVATIONS:

      Cornices are quite big, hence so much cornice control.

     Rimed icicles.

     Nice pow in Blackcomb Bowl.

      Enough wind to transport snow.

     Old stiff slabs on some aspects.

      There were areas of wind hammered hard sastrugi.

     Some aspects had some new and wind deposited soft snow.

       After the warm storm we should see cooler temperatures for March.

FROM SEA TO SKY MIN REPORTS:

Vantage approach: March 2, 2021

Gin Peak: March 2, 2021

VIDEOS:

Avalanches caught on camera: Crazy Avalanches

Powder Picker March 2, 2021: David Jones

ARTICLES:

South Klondike Hwy hit with 'way above average snowfall', closures due to avalanches: Yukon

'Enormous' lake-crossing avalanche: Washington State

Crystal Mountain, WA limiting access after significant avalanche cycle: PNW

How has Covid influenced Backcountry Skiing: WildSnow

Roof avalanche damages a building: Big White

       Submit your best avalanche photo for a pair of  Goggles March 1-31, 2021. Sea to Sky Area.

                                                    Thanks to Volkl Canada for sponsoring.