[MCR] N. Cascades; Coquihalla area

Today, I skied in the Coquihalla summit area with locals from Hope;   Here is what we saw

The snow depth at the Highway seemed around 125cm? (I didn't measure it),  the snow was  nicely covering most of the bushes and willows etc, at the highway elevation. ( 1200m) 

There was a thin raincrust  buried under 5cm of storm-snow at the highway elevation (1200m), this thin crust disappeared at around 1500m, and above this elevation the snow was pretty much undisturbed,  20-25cm of ski pen.  The winds were very light NE, air temps -8.0, thin scattered to broken sky conditions.  HS in sheltered areas at ridge-lines was 200-250cm.   

 There was evidence of an avalanche cycle (dec 12th?) numerous small slabs in steeper terrain.  However today the pack felt pretty strong, although a layer of surface hoar (3-5mm) is present in many areas. . The big question is,  will  forecasted outflow winds destroy the surface hoar,  or  will snow flurries bury and preserve this layer in the coming days?

I think I will return in the coming days and check it out!

Paul Berntsen

Mtn Guide

 

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