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Further to Scott’s Info We spent the week in the pass with three groups cruising around mostly in the Connaught, Asulkan, Illecillewaet drainages and one day up Bostock creek. We received over 50cm of new snow at the hotel throughout the week with several strong wind events. We set out most days expecting to see widespread natural avalanches but were greeted by a surprising lack of activity despite some extensive and successful explosive control on the highway. Friday morning we woke up to 25cm of new snow and cornices on our cars from the strong winds. All three groups headed up Connaught Ck aiming for the tighter trees and avoiding crossing any of the larger paths like the “Frequent Flyer”. Again there was virtually no new avalanche activity but an eerie feeling that it wouldn’t take much extra load to trigger one... Our main concern for the week was the January 26th surface hoar/ facet layer which was down about 80-100cm at treeline by the end of the week. Compression results were almost always in the moderate to hard range but the shear quality was consistent in the Sudden Planar range. We also got a few Rutschblock 4’s on this layer where the whole block would fail and slide off quickly. Also on the radar near the end of the week was the February 4th layer which was down about 30-40cm by Friday and producing moderate shears on spotty surface hoar mostly at lower elevations below the hotel. We spent a bit of time on the glaciers and found a great deal of variability in the snowpack depth due to all the strong wind events we have had his year. Have fun and don’t forget your snorkel. Marc Piché ACMG Mountain Guide
_______________________________________________ These observations and opinions are those of the person who submitted them. The ACMG and its members take no responsibility for errors, omissions, or lapses in continuity. Conditions differ greatly over time and space due to the variable nature of mountain weather and terrain. Application of this information provides no guarantee of increased safety. Do not use the Mountain Conditions Report as the sole factor in planning trips or making decisions in the field. Please check out http://acmg.ca/mcr for more information. |
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