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Skied in the Loop Brook/Bonney Trees area today.
Overcast. Nil precip. -11 and calm at midday at 2050 m. It was windy on the peaks and cliffs of Swanzy and Bonney though, with snow transport up there. One rumble was heard, it could have been an icefall, cornice fall or avalanche but we couldn't see anything moving.
The Dec 5 crust was felt by probing, 80 cm down at 1600 m in the forest. At 1800 m we couldn't feel the crust anymore in a 250 cm snowpack. No wind effect in the moraines or on the glacier. It seemed to us that the Dec 5 crust is very elevation dependent in Rogers Pass and this has been confirmed in discussion with other professionals in the area. It seems to be mostly a below treeline issue here.
It has felt a little bit like the eye of the storm the past few days in Rogers Pass, just good skiing with minimal snow stability concerns, while everywhere around us it seemed like the world was falling down with recent reports of large avalanches in the Rockies, Kootenays, Okanagan and Purcells. Mostly it seemed to come down to terrain choice for us. We originally planned on skiing in the Rockies but because of the poor snowpack decided to go to the Pass instead. Then we picked areas that were sheltered from recent winds to avoid the reported wind slabs. Then on our runs we skied lines that had some steepness but were a series of short, well supported slopes and steered clear of locally thin areas. With conditions the way they are it seemed to be a time to ski standard "classic" lines and refrain from "exploring" too much.
Keep them slippery side down! Mark Klassen Mountain Guide
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