[MCR] Coast Range, Spearhead and Duffy Regions Feb.1st-7th

We just finished a week of Apprentice Ski Guide training in the Spearhead & Duffey Region.

Terrain Travelled

 The Flute/Oboe Basin,  the Spearhead Glacier,  Mt Cayoosh (Armchair Glacier and North Glacier) and Joffre lakes over to Anniversary Glacier.

 

Weather and snow conditions.

Early in the week we had 15cm of snow on top of a very hard melt freeze crust.  Moderate winds formed some small wind slabs near ridge tops and wind exposed areas.  These wind slabs reacted easy to skiing in slopes over 35 deg.  On Feb. 5th a major weather event occurred, lasting through the remainder of the week.  High freezing levels to 2100m,  strong to extreme winds from the SW and heavy precipitation of 100mm was wet snow in the alpine and rain from valley bottom to 2000m.  This resulted in a large natural avalanche cycle running on the melt freeze crust on all aspects at TL and above.  

Travel conditions

The first part of the week was descent skiing in the ALP and open areas of TL and BTL about 1600m.  Below 1600m the travel was quite rugged due to the lack of snow depth and the hard melt freeze crust.  On the Armchair glacier and North Glacier the snowpack was 300cm+ and the North Glacier was very broken, a rope was a must to travel safely up and down.  Lower down in the creek was rugged and had few places to cross. The other group hiked without skis from the parking lot to the Joffre Lakes due to the lack of snow.  The moraine below the glacier had very little snow coverage. Boot crampons and ice axes were needed to access the glacier above.   Snowpack was around 250cm+ on the glacier with more open crevasses than normal. The Anniversary glacier was the best skiing of the week.  Ski crampons were useful for all trips and still would be for lower elevations when the temperatures drop and for possible wind scoured places higher up in the alpine.

Play safe

12 aspirant ski guides

Marc Piche ACMG / IFMGA Mountain Guide

Scott Flavelle ACMG / IFMGA Mountain Guide

Dan Madell ACMG Ski Guide

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