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ACMG Mountain Conditions Report Summary for the Rockies and Columbia Mountains issued July 16, 2015
Despite the last few days of poor weather and fresh snow above 2700 meters, the overriding theme for the summer 2015 mountain conditions continues to be . . . dry, dry, dry.
Over the last 24-hours, 5-10 cm of fresh snow has fallen above 2700 meters making for poor visibility and slippery rock. However, after one more day of poor weather on Friday, the sun returns along with daytime highs of 25 degrees. In most places, this new snow will melt away quickly and it looks to be another beautiful weekend to be outside.
All recent mountain observations point to the continuing theme of dry mountains, with local consensus saying that it feels like mid-August out there. Great conditions for alpine rock climbs, especially ones that avoid rockfall areas or stick to ridges. Mt. Assiniboine north ridge and Mt. Sir Donald NW ridge are a good examples of excellent routes to climb when conditions are super dry.
Snow and ice routes, on the other hand, are a different story. Most of the big ice faces are hard, blue ice from top to bottom and the majority of ice couloirs are streaked with black from rockfall and hard ice. Rocks are melting out that have never melted out before! Avoid these kind of places. If you really must climb snow and ice, then get up well above 3000 meters and expect crevasses to be thinly bridged.
Alpine rock climbing conditions in the Bugaboos are excellent, and prior to todays new snow all routes were dry and good-to-go. The Bugaboo-Snowpatch Col, often suspicious in dry conditions, remains mostly snow and easy travel, although that will likely change soon. Watch out for this place when its dry because its famous for natural and climber induced rockfall.
Many of the local guides are adjusting their plans away from steep snow and ice climbs, and instead shooting for ridges, buttresses, and places where they feel protected from rockfall which is inevitable at times like this. And anyways, who wants to grind up thousands of feet of steep, hard, black ice? Yuk! If you have big snow and ice aspirations, maybe park them for another year and instead focus on the positives . . . like the dry rock!
Be flexible, adapt to the conditions and have a great weekend in the sunshine.
Grant Statham
ACMG Mountain Guide
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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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_______________________________________________
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.
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