The season started very early in the Bulkley Valley. I measured 55 cm at
0 degrees by my house at 500 m elevation in the valley bottom at 0800
yesterday, and it continued snowing until 1300 on the 28th. Since then,
it has been slowly clearing and cooling. The ski hill reported 125 cm at
1600 m yesterday, 60 cm of which fell in 24 hours. I called a high
hazard for the Davidson Project Road on Hudson Bay Mountain.
This morning, I went on a helicopter check flight at 10. Debris and
fracture lines from numerous size 2 and 3 slabs was blown in, but
clearly visible. It appears that most avalanche prone terrain has
avalanched, even terrain that does not run frequently. Debris was within
20 m of the # 7 switchback on the road.
At the usual observation site at 1500 m, there were 130 cm of snow on
the ground.
The present cooling trend will probably stabilize this early snowpack in
the short term.
--
Christoph Dietzfelbinger
Mountain Guide, Bear Mountaineering and Burnie Glacier Chalet
Box 4222
Smithers, B.C. V0J 2N0 Canada
tel. 250-847-3351 fax: 250-847-2854
info@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx www.bearmountaineering.ca
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