[MCR] ACMG Mountain Conditions Report Summary for the Rockies and Columbia Mountains issued july 21st, 2012

ACMG Mountain Conditions Report Summary for the Rockies and Columbia Mountains issued july 21st, 2012 Happy Solstice! Mostly a fine day in the Rockies and Columbias if the spring monsoons haven't created rockslides on your highway of choice. Spring is still slow to come and that may continue for awhile. Reports from along the divide of the Valhallas, Monashees, Selkirks, Purcells, and Rockies all generally sound similar and indicate that snow is hanging in to around 1700m in the shade and 2000m on south and west facing terrain. The far east slope of the Rockies is drying out nicely. Longest daylight hours of the year so there currently isn't much time for overnight snowpack recovery. That and the forecast of grey skies, some rain and warm temps means that the alpine may only be a happy place for short periods of time and most likely at higher elevations and not under steep terrain. The bulk of the avalanche activity that has been reported recently has been coming out of very steep terrain. This trend will likely continue until we get our first REAL blast of heat. Then we may see avalanche activity on more moderate terrain. Probably some of the worst potential travel right now would be on low angle talus slopes or boulder fields. These may have the poorest chance to freeze and the joy of falling into holes between blocks is hard to express in words:) Mark Klassen mentioned the top of Brewers Buttress in a report today and that certainly can be a short, flat and nasty bit of snow walking. A crew is working at the Conrad Kain hut this week so hopefully we will get a report from there soon. First rumour was good walking up most of the hut approach trail but 1 to 1.5 m of snow at the hut-sounds about right. Walking above the hut and into the spires without a good freeze would likely be quite awful for now. Report from Rogers Pass said all the quartzite is wet or white and skiing is still ok up the Asulkan and Illecillewaet if your timing and decisions are good. As with the Trans Canada highway today-assume that some access/logging roads will be damaged from the runoff. Water is still high almost everywhere and the snow melt has a long way to go still. At low elevation crags the snow is long gone so the seep is mostly about what just recently fell out of the sky. The mosquitoes aren't out yet in most places. Isn't that nice:) Larry Stanier ACMG/IFMGA 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.

_______________________________________________
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.
See http://acmg.ca/mcr for more information.
See http://informalex.org/subscribe.shtml/unsubscribe to remove your name from 
this list.