jmckay

Hi folks: I thought I'd share this as it's related to the MCR -- promoting safety in the backcountry. "Trailex" has just emerged as a grassroots initiative here in the Bow Valley. If you're planning a climbing trip that takes you through bear country (i.e., any climb I can think of around here!), you might like to check it out the night before to see if there have been any recent dangerous wildlife sightings or signs: "Trailex is a website that allows trail users to share information about trail safety in the Bow Valley (from Banff to Bragg Creek). The goal is to keep humans and wildlife safe. You can view recent postings before you choose where you want to go. Or you can post a message. Share this website with all your friends!" Anyone is welcome to view posts or contribute. http://trailex.org Regards, Tom Wolfe

Just out of the Ishinca Valley yesterday. Unusual weather cycle has delayed the climbing season a bit. Mild spring storms continue to drop snow and keep things from consolidating as it should. French pulled out of Houndoy nest to Pisco becuse of soft snow. I pulled the pin on Toculluraju at 5100 meters as hand test pulled easy shears on grappel layer. Guided Americain (Mark Cosley)group and Peruvian came down also so perhaps a couple more weeks till things are as they should be.

ATHABASCA/Ice-fields June 2nd. Light rain most of the day to 2600m and light snow above. May 3rd. Climbed Athabasca via AA col. Mix of sun and cloud, cool and strong(50-70kmh) SW winds all day. Good travel on a 5cm raincrust to 2600m and a mix of crust and old avalanche debris above that. All recent snow has been blown away on the AA route but there may be some crisp, fresh windslabs in some deep N facing gullies and low on the big North facing slopes. Saw LOTS of recent and observed avalanche activity on the Banff Jasper highway south of the icefields in the afternoon heat, especially between 2400 and 2700m's. Larry Stanier 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.

Was flying around Louis today. Gmoser route is mostly dry. Kain route still has snow and water on east face. Homage to the Spider is a ways off yet. Descent gully has surprisingly little snow. Marc Ledwidge 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

Hello, Climbed the south ridge of the south peak of Mt. Edith today with Matt Mueller. The route has a regular covering of spring gravel on it but otherwise is dry and in good shape. The hole/chimney on the descent has some snow but we were easily able to kick steps down. Enjoy, watch for loose rock on the way up. Jesse de Montigny Assistant Rock Guide Assistant Ski 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.

Caution! Diretissima, on Mt. Yamnuska. On the last pitch (8) below the crux chock stone by about 3 meters, there are 2 blocks stacked on top of one another, about volley ball sized, and perched precariously. I repositioned them but there is really nowhere to put them otherwise, (without sending them all the way down!, not advised) It seemed in general the last pitch has more loose stone, than previous ascents that I have made. Aaron Beardmore 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.

Was on Forbidden Corner Thurs 18th. Be aware that on the pitch 6 (the one you climb the loose flake to gain the webbing for protecting the traverse to the belay) has serious loose rock waiting to come off. The lead climber just placed his hand on it and the size of a fridge door just pealed off. Missing me and somehow not even scratching the rope. This rock is climbed all the time to gain that webbing and just from looking at what's still attached. There is still more waiting to come off. It is very easy to recognize what peeled off. I've never posted a posting and I thought this could be important info to pass on regarding Forbidden Corner, especially since the Assistant Rock Training is coming up. It's apparent that winter freezing and melting had contributed to what is stated below. This is one time that I did not have my camera so I have no photo to show and tell. Nick Rapaich, ARG _______________________________________________ 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.

Hi All, This may seem early to most of you but I have had several inquiries lately so I thought I would pass it on. It is still winter in the Bugaboo Spires. The logging road has only been passable (4x4 only) for a couple of days and the last three KM into the Park are closed due to construction from last fall. The trail is snow covered all the way to the hut and is still threatened by serious avalanche hazard from Eastpost Spire. Historically, parties heading into the Bugs before mid to late June have spent more time wallowing around in waist deep snow than climbing. Cheers, Marc Piché 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.

As the CAA has stopped functioning for season and not many people seem to be going out into the hills and reporting about it, this might help out; On a ski mountaineering tour May 13-15th in the Mt. Columbia zone; Valley bottoms melted out, hiking shoes a boon. Intense and severe radiation. Clear skies, overnight lows of 12, alpine highs of 12. Winds L-Moderate from SW increasing with altitude. Some ridge top snow transport. No new NATURAL avalanche activity observed. Soft Slabs triggered on Mt. Columbia summit ridge (see Mt. Columbia/Catleguard MCR report for details and pics). Snowpack Synopsis GLACIER CONDITIONS: Valley to 1900m: Innovative business man could set up a slurpy stand anywhere in snow leading to glaciers. 1900m to 2200m; widespread melt-freeze crust supportive in early a.m., softening in p.m. creating either troublesome breakable double penetration but mostly nice soft crust/corn depending on aspect/elevation. Snow on the lower reaches of glaciers melting out super fast, bridges beginning to sag, crevaces going bearback, snowplugs exposed and yellowing. What snow there is, is isothermal. Here water has percolated deep into bridges weakening them significantly. Roping up advised at the very least on lower reaches of glaciers. 2200m-3200m; winter conditions beginning to change. Over 4 meters of snow with strong bridges, no sags, only the big gapers visible. Above 2800 meters 5-10 cm of settled HST (recent storm snow) can be found. SLOPE CONDTIONS: Icefields snowpack very variable with isolated weakness persisting in the high alpine. First area of concern is the particular widespread weakness, susceptible to human trigger, on high alpine- lee & cross loaded- SE and NE aspects. -2800-3700 m, 10-15 cm of settled storm snow over 20-35cm of denser snow over a 3-4 cm windcrust/melt-freeze depending on aspect. On wind affected slopes, especially SE, a soft slab has formed with a poor bond above the crust. Seemed well settled below crust.. N and I suspect NW aspects, were much better, well settled/bonded layers with preserved 5-15cm surface powder. These slopes are susceptible to surface sloughing/loose snow avalanches- with trigger. -Below 2800 meters warmer temps have had an overall settling effect on the snowpack. Isolated pillows are still visible, caution on convex features. Next cycle of lower elevation solar aspect wet slides not running yet. -Non glacier vicinity slopes are warmer and need careful evaluation as they have had several melt-freeze cycles and are either bomber corn or ready for wet slide initiation depending on time of day/aspect. Outlook: High Alpine: Caution; SE-NE soft slab on wind affected slopes. Do not be deceived by good overnight freezes. Daytime heating is just now beginning to affect alpine slopes below the surface snow and into mid-pack. A resulting slide or cornice failure could trigger a secondary early season weakness avalanche especially in the lower alpine zones where they are more prevalent. I encountered cornices over 3600 meters that had a glazed top with moist snow 15 cm down. Below 3000 meters in the shade, moist snow down 30cm . Since the alpine is currently in that temperature transition time and just beginning to react to the day after day warm temps, all those nasties, such as cornice fall, rockfall, snowballing, falling mushrooms, will in my opinion make even North facing gullies not so user friendly. Increase caution with higher night-time low temps. Widespread cornice failure has not yet begun, but Low Alpine: A new cycle of wet slide avalanches will likely begin happening on steeper S aspects very soon below 2800 meters or so. There are however many excellent solar aspect corn snow slopes to be skied and soft North aspects too. Maintain caution on windloaded and steep convex rolls here. Rockfall potential will become prevalent in the next while. Treeline and Below treeline; Wretched blood sucking parasitic pests still abundant Recommendations: These are tumultuous transitional times. In the mountains conditions are very variable; stop, think, consider, be more conservative until things even out and become more predictable. Eric Dumerac Rocky Mountain Vertical ACMG Assistant Ski/Alpine Guide, CAA Level II, CSIA Level II Ski Instructor. Long time ski tourer, pioneering alpinist, rock, ice, and mixed climber at your service. 403-609-2965 Canmore AB.

Mt. Columbia/Castleguard May 13-15 (See MCR post Icefields Conditions for more conditions info) *Pictures courtesy of Nick Rapaich. Warning; pics give a foreshortened view. Myself and a group of 5 including aspirant extraordinaire, Nick Rapaich, skied up the Saskatchewan glacier, climbed Mt. Columbia and skied to the summit of Castleguard. Saturday; From big bend, no skiable snow on approach to glacier (bring hiking shoes). @ alluvial flats stay left and gain treed terraces/trail for easier traveling. @ the moraine lake go around its right side. Skied up Saskatchewan gl, camped at 2640m, 15 clicks from big bend pullout. 1900-2200m; From Sunday to present there was a dramatic melting of snow and weakening of bridges from the toe to about 2200m. Crevaces covered on Saturday were like surfacing dolphins by Monday. Isothermal below 2100. 2600m and above had over 4 meter snowpack with strong bridges, no visible sags or crevaces in compression zones, only the big gapers visible. Sunday; skied up and down and up the trench to the base of mighty C. Some double penetration trail breaking with p.m. heating. Above 3000m is 10-15 cm of settled storm snow overlying 20-35cm of denser snow on top of a 3-4 cm melt-freeze/windcrust depending on aspect that is well bonded with settled snow below. On wind affected slopes, especially the SE cross loaded slope lookers right of the S ridge, a soft slab has formed with a poor bond above the crust. From base, the East Face rib like feature looked inviting. I saw what looked like a diagonal cross loaded pillow en-route 2/3 up the face (appears in picture as a stark white pillow on upper face). That, with limited snowpack obs and the rather large real-estate over head decided me on the South Ridge. Gained the ridge and skied to the base of the rock step. @ 3460 quick hand shears showed easy results. Further investigation revealed the soft slab instability 30-40 down (see summary below). Good plan not to be on the East face eh! Staying high and close to ridge rocks, scrambling up a rocky gully feature and rocky snow slopes gains the summit ridge. Good steps can be made, good short roping stances and over the ridge counter balance belays. On summit ridge now, from 10 meters, remotely triggered a small soft slab from ridge, 15- 35cm deep by 10 meters across. Further up the ridge triggered another remote that propagated below and ahead of me to almost ridgetop 10-40cm deep x >150 meters wide this time to size 1.5. Definitely would knock a person off. The crux is the hundred meters or so between 3550 and 3650 meters requiring steeper gully feature snow climbing, sometimes hoping over the ridge to belay and careful management of threading a safe line between the South East slopes slab and summit ridge cornices. There is one small double cornice on way to summit. Overall the cornices were quite manageable. Though there was no new avalanche activity other than p.m. solar aspect sloughs. When we came down, our tracks were filled in. I suspect the slab will fill in and re-build with observed snow transport shortly. Instabilities in the high alpine especially on wind-affected features remain an important hazard. From the top of the province, I am happy to report everything is looking good, the views were spectacular on this blue bird day; Twins, Bryce, Clemenceau, the Rocky Mountain Range, what a treat and no one else around!? Monday; in complete contrast to Mt. Columbia, the North East Face of Castleguard was in excellent condition. Benefiting from its lower, warmer elevation (compared to Columbia) more North aspect, and less wind effect, the snow here was well settled and tests showed no results. I felt comfortable setting a track across steeper slopes to gain the east ridge, then skiing the face itself. A fun summit and a great way to come off the Saskatchewan Glacier with good downhill skiing. Intense solar radiation on the way out. Widespread Snowballing and sloughing, isothermal below 2100. I witnessed continual serac activity in vicinity drainages with daytime heating. Glad we did not have to ski out the Athabasca Gl. in the afternoon! If ya know the lingo; Conditions: 1880-3700, Clear, L 12, H 12, L-Moderate SW, Nil, ridgeblo- M, snpk@2600>4.5cm. Mt. Columbia @ 3460M Test 70dn; SE, 30 deg, CTE 8 CTM 13 SP 35dn 1F on P-. (SSL on wind crust), NR below. Castleguard @ about 2900M NE, 32 deg, STN. Iso Wumfing on glacial flats above 2800m. Aval obs; Mt. Columbia 05/14 sz .5 Sr SSL 35deg SE approx 3550, sz 1.5 Sr SSL 35deg SE approx 3600 35cm dn by <150m. Eric Dumerac Rocky Mountain Vertical ACMG Assistant Ski/Alpine Guide, CAA Level II, CSIA Level II Ski Instructor. Long time ski tourer, pioneering alpinist, rock, ice, and mixed climber at your service. 403-609-2965 Canmore AB.

Just back from a week in the Coast range where excellent spring conditions were encountered – last weeks cooler temps and sunny skies allowed for great travel and powder/corn skiing conditions. This is a bit of old news as weather in BC has taken a turn for more summer like conditions (temps to reach 30 degrees in Revelstoke today). We flew into the Pantheon Range (just north of Mt. Waddington) on Monday May 8 (delayed by one day due to weather that brought us 10 cm. of new snow) with Mike King of Whitesaddle Air Service under clear skies and temps of -6 at 8,000 ft. – we camped in Nirvana pass but I would suggest flying a little further south until you are underneath Mt. Bayamee which will allow you to ski downhill at the end of the day from most reasonable objectives. During the week we observed no new avalanche activity including solar aspects as the crust was staying intact throughout the day. We had good crust formation overnight that continued to support through out the day and flew out Thursday night under clearing skies – Friday brought a brief period of snow showers (10 cm. on the road from Williams lake) as we drove to Whistler to ski the Spearhead. By Friday evening the skies had cleared and temps dropped overnight forming a strong supportive crust with up to 15 cm. of fresh powder on top on higher elevation north aspects. Blackcomb is closed so access is currently from the Whistler ski area. Observed a couple of older large cornice failures with large blocks that ran 2,000 ft, vertical in one case – other than that not much recent avalanche activity – though later in the week I am sure that the new snow started to run on the solar aspects. This is a great time to do the Spearhead as there is no heli ski traffic in the area and the Village is cheaper and way less crowded – something to keep in mind for the future. As mentioned earlier this is old news and the more recent warm temps will require early starts to beat the daytime warming. Have a great spring – time to get the rock shoes out today, Cheers, Scott Davis Mountain Guide

Just talked to a party ascending north ridge of Victoria after leaving skis at col. A party of 2 was following them. The lower party triggered a cornice failure on the way up the ridge and was avalanched down the upper Victoria glacier for a few hundred feet. They were miraculously unhurt and later, everyone was able to ski down without further incident. The cornice did not seem overhanging to the either party but was at least 4 meters thick. Details are from a phone conversation so I hope I got the details right. Marc Ledwidge 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.

Skied up Mt. Field today. Excellent conditions with powder over crust on the upper half and corn snow on the lower half. The road is melted out up to the meeting of the waters so a bike would be useful. Skiing from there with the exception of the switchbacks that are also melted out. Marc Ledwidge 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.

Spent Sat thru Mon April 29-May 1 on the Wapta, starting at Bow and ending at Sherbrooke. The Bow approach is still holding together but could be gone soon I suspect. Continued loose snow and wet slab avalanches in the moraines on the approach to size 1.5 with rain showers to 2700m on Saturday. Still very good coverage on the glaciers. Not a lot of thick crust formation at upper elevations although that is changing with recent warm temps/rain and now cooling. The surface hoar is 50 down and reactive to compression tests. Still, I felt confident enough in stability to take the shortcut under the east side of St Nick on Saturday and to go over the Balfour High Col on Sunday with -3.5 degree temps and no wind but with 6-10cm of new snow and no visibility. -7.5 on Sunday at Scott Duncan and it was frozen hard although the crusts were still only a few cm thick. We took the direct classic exit rather than go under the cornices that were in the sun on Niles. Many recent wet slab avalanches to size 3 on the west aspects in Sherbrooke Valley (Sunday? no snow or rain effect on the debris and the sun came out for a few hours on Sunday PM). Propagating a long way. I suspect on either surface hoar or perhaps a crust. Skating across Sherbrooke Lake. The trail out has a few bare patches and is very narrow in spots. The Parks trail crew was in there cutting out the recent blowdown and I suspect they will have cleared the trail by Wednesday but the trail is not long for this world. Fresh snow on the lawn in Banff this morning and wind transport off Rundle but the skis have already got storage wax on them and I'm packing for a road trip. There's gotta be summer somewhere south of here. Mark Klassen Mountain Guide mark@alpinism.com www.alpinism.com _______________________________________________ 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.

3 days up at Bow and Peyto. In on the 28th, -3 in parking lot, good travel, still solid by 1pm at hut. 29th over to Peyto.. +1.5 at Bow at 0700 soft heading up. Numerous squalls and intermittent sleet and snow. By evening numerous point releases on all aspects to size 1.5. On Rhonda N the steep snow slope facing Peyto was sluffing all afternoon. Isothermal conditions in pm most places off the glacier. Peyto lake looked bluish...probably done for the year... I know from descending it a week a go it was already getting sketchy in the moraines for snow. ~ 5-10cm HN overnight then-3 at Peyto. April 3oth- Good travelling on glacier back to Bow. Numerous size 1-2's on moraines below and facing Bow Hut. Some others closer to the turnoff to Crowfoot as well. Point releases stepping down. Also on E facing slopes below Bow Bump there was a large size 2 out of the rocks. (All released on the 29th) By 1130am getting isothermal on descent trail right from hut. had to stay right on the track. (Lots of craters for those who didn't) Some of the snow bridges in canyon have broken, not a big deal though. Bow lake was still fine, down to ice but Ok when surface is soft. Needs some cooler temps to glue this place back together. Still suspect deep instabilities and caution as the warm temps have deeply penetrated the snow pack and a significant cooling trend is need to increase stability. Peter Peter Amann Mountain Guiding Box 1495, Jasper AB, T0E 1E0 www.incentre.net/pamann pamann@incentre.net _______________________________________________ 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.

From the last field trip above my mining project, here is a report on the conditions we found. Temperatures were -5.5 at 1900 m at 0900 with strong southerly winds and light snowfall. Surfaces were very hard which made for marginal travelling even with ski crampons on and heels down. We dug a pit that showed rising snow temperatures - just a bit warmer than -2 for most of the 150 cm - with a strongly frozen lid on top. We found hard shears 8 cm and 85 cm down in a snowpack that alternates between hard crusts and finger hard facetted layers. We experienced one whumpf in a shallow snowpack area at 1600 m and saw no new avalanches. Skiing quality was fair at best. -- Christoph Dietzfelbinger, Mountain Guide Bear Mountaineering and the Burnie Glacier Chalet Box 4222 Smithers B.C. Canada V0J 2N0 info@bearmountaineering.ca www.bearmountaineering.ca tel. 250-847-3351 fax 250-847-2854 _______________________________________________ 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.

Saddle Mtn in Lk. Louise yesterday. Skied the N face couloir. Not quite yet ready for good ski quality as the 3cm surface melt freeze crust made for good traveling but poor skiing. Found the March SH (surface hoar) layer (3-5mm 70% of it still standing proud) with a N facing, 20deg. test profile @ 7700ft, 50cm down with easy compression/shear test. Would not have continued to the couloir if it had not already slid recently. On the way back from the Parkway today I noticed that the North Face of Saddle had slid near ridge top in the last 12hrs, with a size 2 that surely slid on SH triggered by pm warming. On this short fun tour, there is some route-finding and steep boot packing down North side of ridge where it peters out into steep cliffs- find inukshuk 40 meters down off ridge for gully feature leading to top of couloir. Cirque Pk today: Up the S ridge via Helen lake, thence down the SSE face from summit. In perfect condition right now, with a short boot pack near summit. Amazing long dist. vistas of Assiniboine, Bryce, etc. On this East side of the highway the S aspects we skied were excellent. The corn is not quite ripe yet but the cooler temps of Fri and Sat dried out the S asp snow pack and created surface melt freeze re-crystallization that felt like a skiff of powder up high and warmed to corn like snow below. No surface hoar found, no whumfing or avalanches observed. Though it was a scorcher today, due to the good overnight freeze we hardly got any snowballing or pinwheels, neither was there any isothermal snow until below tree-line. Stability and hazard definitely felt good up there today but if it really warms up as it is forecasted beware of wet snow, isothermal slides on steeper aspects. Get out there! Eric Dumerac, Ass. Ski/Alpine 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.

I was up on the Wapta last Monday to Friday, skiing and climbing between Bow and Peyto. There is still a wintry snowpack up there. Windslabs linger on the surface and of special note is the late March surface hoar layer now buried 35-85 cm down. Both these layers produced avalanches over the week, the most interesting one being on the headwall above Bow Hut (photos). I'm sure this was on the surface hoar layer, looked like about 50 cm deep, and failing on low angle albeit unsupported terrain. It was triggered by a wind event and morning sun, running at 8.45 am on Tuesday (witnessed by skiers on Bow Lake). This is similar terrain as most other avalanches I saw over the week: upper elevation glacier, N or NE aspect, unsupported terrain. A profile in the Rhonda/Baker basin at 2900 m showed the surface hoar down 85 cm. There was a windlasb about 20 cm thick on the surface. When I made a column for a compression test it failed and slid on the surface hoar before I cut the back of the column, leaving the 20 cm thick surface windslab hanging suspended! I had never seen that happen before. Another profile on the south ridge of Mt Rhonda showed the surface hoar down 35 cm, beneath a hard windslab. The obvious question is what the Balfour High Col is like. Over the week at least one party declined to go up there while another safely made it up and over. Late in the week it was warming and north aspects up to 2400 m had seen a thin crust form. On solar aspects the snow was moist up to ridgetop with numerous loose snow and slab avalanches noted on west aspects, running on a crust about 30 cm down. All in all a bit of a mixed bag out there. Don't expect any of these instabilities to go away unless there is a significant melt-freeze event that reaches mountain top for at least a couple of days. Mark Klassen Mountain Guide mark@alpinism.com www.alpinism.com

Skied to the 1500 m observation site on the E side of Hudson Bay Mountain this morning. The winds of the last two days did not bring much new snow. We could see our old tracks in the big traverse at 1900 m, with some new snow in deposition areas. Only one size 2 moist avalanche, cornice triggered, had run between 1800 and 1400 m in the main path. We did not see any other new activity. A profile in a sunny aspect at 1500 m showed an isothermal snowpack with one shear 90 cm down. I don't think that the snowpack is isothermal in higher and shadier locations yet. -- Christoph Dietzfelbinger, Mountain Guide Bear Mountaineering and the Burnie Glacier Chalet Box 4222 Smithers B.C. Canada V0J 2N0 info@bearmountaineering.ca www.bearmountaineering.ca tel. 250-847-3351 fax 250-847-2854 _______________________________________________ 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.

With all the negative factors affecting the Rockies’ snow pack right now (lots of recent new snow with strong winds, day-time warming with intense radiation, buried surface hoar layer lingering) decision making for day trips isn’t all that easy right now. Yesterday, I decided for a day trip to Mount Gordon along the Wapta Icefield. Snow coverage on the approach to Bow Hut is good, including the Canyon. Cold temps especially in the morning (-14C at Bow Lake at 8AM) and about 40-50cm of settled new snow on the glacier made for ski penetration of roughly 10cm – 15 cm. There is evidence of intense wind transport from previous days, predominantly from south/westerly directions, which continued throughout the day along the ridgelines yesterday. Lots of really fat looking wind pillows lingering on slopes close to ridge lines. Also, there have been a good number of recent avalanches, the largest (probably size 2.5 / 3) we saw was on Balfour Glacier. The start zone is in relatively low angle terrain on the glacier climber’s left (south) of the lower ramp commonly used to get to Balfour High Col and it ran into the Hector Lake approach to the Scott Duncan Hut. I suspect the slide was caused by the recent wind loading, possibly combined with the surface hoar layer prevalent on northern aspects in higher elevations along the Wapta Icefields. This surface hoar layer is currently buried 40 – 60cm deep and with wind-stiffened slabs above, many slopes could be prime candidates for skier triggering. Enjoy the sunshine and stay safe! Jorg Wilz Mountain Guide (IFMGA / UIAGM) www.ontopmountaineering.com 1-800 506 7177 or (001) 403 678 2717

Cool temperatures and 5 to 35 cm of storm snow (depending on elevation) made for exceptional stability and skiing conditions. Ski crampons would have made life a lot easier. Night time temperatures at the lodge dropped to -9 and stayed about 2.5 during the day. I measured a 35 cm thick crust in the morning, with the temperature 10 cm down at -6. There are 118 cm of snow at the lodge and over 4 m on the glaciers. Crevasses and creeks are very well bridged. Rotten snow was not a concern at all and the corn skiing was excellent. Powder was to be found in cold aspects and at elevations over 1800 m. The wind effect was not interfering with the skiing very much. Mountaintop temperatures were from -9 to -11 in mid-day, with moderate to strong west to southwest winds. The only new avalanches were two size 2 slabs, triggered in steep terrain by icefall, that consisted mostly of ice and some of the storm snow. -- Christoph Dietzfelbinger Mountain Guide, Bear Mountaineering and Burnie Glacier Chalet Box 4222 Smithers, B.C. V0J 2N0 Canada tel. 250-847-3351 fax: 250-847-2854 info@bearmountaineering.ca www.bearmountaineering.ca _______________________________________________ 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.

Just out from a week at Selkirk Lodge (halfway between Rogers Pass and Revelstoke), where conditions went from full spring corn/powder to a midwinter snowpack over the space of three days. Currently an impressive spring storm has deposited between 40-60 cm. of snow in the last 48hrs. at Treeline elevations and likely closer to a meter in the high alpine – we observed snowfall rates yesterday afternoon in excess of 3 cm/hour that continued well into the night – moderate to strong winds from the SW accompanied this snowfall until they switched to moderate to strong from the North last night. This was followed by a dramatic cooling overnight (Friday April 14th) with morning temps of -10 Celsius Saturday morning which seemed to help with the bonding of the storm snow to the crust below it. We ski cut several steep rolls to test them with no results and other test results were likewise favorable – however when the skies cleared this afternoon while we waited for the helicopter to arrive we observed that the entire head of the valley (an exposed alpine cirque) had released sometime late in the storm propagating over a distance of 2 kilometers and involving the release of terrain that was in the 25 degree incline – though much of it was steeper than that – aspect ranged from NE through NW – visibility was still foggy but it seemed to be several large slabs that I am highly suspect released simultaneously but that had small pieces of terrain still intact between them – anyway quite an event for sure and quite contradictory to our evidence a few kilometers away (and also several hours of time different). All that to say that conditions have changed significantly in the mountains and special attention should be paid to the affects of daytime heating and the still lurking presence of the late March buried surface hoar layer in the high north facing alpine. Cheers, Scott Davis Mountain Guide

Temperatures have dropped and there has been a bit of new snow above 1000 m. We found 10 cm of storm snow at 1800 m, on top of a very hard 80 cm thick slab. There are softer layers below this, but it would be difficult to trigger this slab as long as temperatures remain cool. Today we were in a highly windloaded area that has about a metre more snow than less sheltered areas on Hudson Bay Mountain. Skiing quality was good with 10 cm of soft snow on top of a hard pack. -- Christoph Dietzfelbinger, Mountain Guide Bear Mountaineering and the Burnie Glacier Chalet Box 4222 Smithers B.C. Canada V0J 2N0 info@bearmountaineering.ca www.bearmountaineering.ca tel. 250-847-3351 fax 250-847-2854

I have two one is on ebay and the other I will try selling in these various forums. What am I doing with two. Well one is my wifes, my mother in-law bought us these packs but one has never been worn and I used the other a couple times checking the weather alone Cat ski guiding This pack was purchased for me by my mother in-law. (who would have thunk it.) I am a proffessional mountain guide in Canada so know the value of these from a safety aspect. This pack has only been used once and comes with an extra air cartridge. No matter if your just starting out or a vetran this pack can add a real piece of mind i the backcountry. Your wife/husband will love it also. Technical Data Compact System Dual System 150 litre airbag 2 x 75 litre airbags Total weight 1,850 g 1,565 g Cartridge approx. 380 g approx. 480 g Airbag material * outer material polyamide fibre * inner material PVC bag * pressure in use 0.15 bar * bursting pressure rated at double the usage pressure * outer material polyamide fibre * inner material PVC bag * pressure in use 0.15 bar * bursting pressure rated at double the usage pressure Activation Bowden-Pulley with automatic spring loaded trigger handle Air pressure activation with pressured capsule in the trigger Filling procedure In approx. 1 second about 80 liters of the gas-air mix are being forced into the two airbags and in another 1.5 seconds additional 70 liters will be filled (depending on the outside temperature) Cartridges The gas cartridges are made with a special Aluminium/Steel alloy. Spring loaded, inlaid copper discs form the closure and facilitate the refilling. The usage pressure is 300 bar, and the bursting pressure starts at 600 bar. Joe McKay mckay@mountainguide.com 403 760 3344 (when asked why I was selling) I am trying to raise money foe a new hd video camera is the main reason. The other is that I do not ski guide anymore or I would think about hanging on to it. I do find it a bit heavy but I am someone who spends $1500. to shave a few ounces out of my heliski pack. I am a light freak. Besides mommy in-law baought the thing so it is money found. Mow if it was a full body balloon the enveloped me while ice climbing that would be another story:) [READ THE FORUM RULES. NO E-BAY. LINK REMOVED BY MOD.] [/img]

Just back from 7 days on the Wapta icefields. Up Peyto on April 2, cool and good conditions on moraine. Still good coverage and could skin most of the way up moraines where you usually have to walk. Noted big slide on Baker as mentioned in other MCR! A mixed bag over the next 5 days. Over to Balfour on April 5th, again good travelling, no signs of any new activity. April 6th, very warm overcast and snowing lightly. Up Diaberlet glacier in foggy conditions, snowing lightly, +6 at 9400ft top of glacier. Lots of activity off of Balfour east side to size 2 that day but no new icefall. Approximately 3-4cm of new snow during day and early evening. Clearing night of 6th, down to -5. Dawned clear and we went over to Scott Duncan in excellent conditions. Quiet day on east side of Balfour. I used what I call the combo route ( see pic ) which I have used for a number of years. This avoids steep lower slope.Go up the north ramp to top of moraines then a gradual traverse slightly down onto the low route. Following a bench just below the crevasses that split "the" ramps, a clean line led to the bottom of the ramp near the rock feature. No visible slots here. Stayed close to rocks all the way passing the crevasse close to rock, again well filled in. No signs of recent icefall activity in this area. There was about 3-5cm of new snow on top of a melt freeze crust. Below this the snow was still dry. Did have a few whumphs near the high col in the flats. Good travel on Daly Glacier. Out Niles on the 8th, cloudy and frozen very hard. Signs of loose avalanches on face of Niles and gullies lower down above where you cut back into trees. Lots of activity on both aspects above Sherbrooke lake! The trail out below lake has lots of windfall! Tedious and slow becoming isothermal lower down by 1100am Driving home to Jasper noted that there is certainly less activity the further north you go. Peter Amann Peter Amann Mountain Guiding Box 1495, Jasper AB, T0E 1E0 www.incentre.net/pamann pamann@incentre.net _______________________________________________ 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.