[MCR] South Purcells

Hi,


Spent today skiing mellow terrain in the South Purcells west of Kimberley.  Here's a quick update on conditions:  


- Unstable weather with some gusty winds and steady snowfall (1cm/hour), a couple sunny breaks.


- Test profile in a treeline glade at 2250m showed the persistent weak layer buried Feb 11th (10-20mm surface hoar) 70cm below the surface.  It was very obvious in the pit wall.  This layer produced moderate 'pop' or 'sudden' results with compression tests.  No other significant shears were observed lower in the 260cm snowpack.


- Widespread whumpfing when breaking trail through low angled open terrain between 1800m and 2100m.  Less whumpfing observed above that elevation.


- One size 2 natural avalanche observed from a distance in the lower half of a talus slope at 1975m, looked quite recent, suspect it failed on the Feb 11th layer.


Great ski quality, but with that layer out there don't be tempted into steeper open terrain!


Jeff Volp,

Ski Guide

Kimberley, BC

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