Nowcast- As I type at o'dark-thirty, high clouds drift into the region and that keeps a lid on inverted temperatures which register in the teens near the trailheads and mid 20's along the ridges. Southerly winds began bumping into the 20's overnight, with a spike into the 30's right after the turn of the new day, and continue in that spirit early this morning. Riding and turning conditions are slightly elusive with heat crusts making their presence known on the solars and wind jacked snow on the polars in the alpine. However, somewhere in-between is a sweet spot, especially mid elevation, wind sheltered terrain where the snow maintains its 5-star Yelp rating.
Forecast- Storminess slides well to our south, yet delivers high clouds for our zone with temperatures climbing into the mid 30's. Southwest winds blow in the upper 30's before decreasing as the day wares on.
Futurecast- Quiet weather is on tap for Sunday with a two part storm lining up for the beginning of the work week. Round one on Monday is a glancing blow with the second wave arriving Tuesday delivering a punch. I'll have a better handle on trends and timing for tomorrow's update.
I underestimated how far Wednesday nights 2" reset and bright sunshine could change my spirits and deliver outstanding turning conditions, whilst offering predictable avy danger. The BOGO bonus was getting to spend Thursday with a rippin' crew of solid, young, snow pros (obviously farmers in a previous life :)... thanks Joey and Jeremy for an outstanding field day on the eastern front.
Huge thanks for all the great obs streaming in from the eastern front. Detailed trip reports and recent obs are found
HERE.
No new avalanche activity to report, but Wednesday's winds whipped up a handful of fresh drifts, producing a few natural, cornice triggered avalanches in the wind zone. While not widespread, terrain with similar characteristics like
Tower Mountain in the image above are likely suspects.
No other significant avalanche activity to report, but if ya wanna geek out, click
HERE to track this years slide activity throughout the range.
