Thread: Berthoud Photo/Conditions Thread (2009-2010)

heading up tomorrow by myself. silver VW silver roof pod with a change for a nickel sticker, yell at me if you want to do some laps together as I am up for checking out anything (on the pass) tomorrow

Originally Posted by smitchell333

I love that run - out via 7 mile?

How was the coverage in those west facing trees lower down?

We headed for the gulley. The roll over with trees looked thin. Gulley and 7mile was great though.

Yea, Doug's NTN=fail. He just loved my AK's. Not. He declared them submarines. 95 wide doesn't cut it anymore

I am thinking Monday will be $ for low angle stuff. NWS calling for some decent snowfall between now and then. Has anyone dug a pit up there recently? Obviously expecting depth hoar and significant wind loading, but wondering what other layers to look for when I do my own research.

Any news form today? I would like to get some powder sticks out on monday if its worth while.

We tried to dig a pit, but could not get a column to stand up long enough to do a compression test. I would say the danger is high.

Originally Posted by JT@SCCSKIS

Any news form today? I would like to get some powder sticks out on monday if its worth while.

Hardly any new accumulation up there. There is some soft snow on top in places that's been blown around in the past couple days. Not a powder day up there today, nor will it be tomorrow.

In places where there has been a lot of skier compression, the conditions were like skiing at a resort with a bit of fresh in the last couple days. In places with less pressure, there is unconsolidated sugar that may be prone to sluffing out. I wouldn't call the current danger anywhere near high, as most places with untracked are untracked because they are simply not ready to ski (excepting above treeline windpillows, which I wouldn't venture anywhere near at the moment). It will be a different story when we get a significant new layer up there, though.

NWS was predicting so much but it looks like Berthoud got nothing in the past several days. They now say 4-8 this afternoon, 7-11 tonight, and 4-8 tomorrow.

Originally Posted by Kevo

NWS was predicting so much but it looks like Berthoud got nothing in the past several days. They now say 4-8 this afternoon, 7-11 tonight, and 4-8 tomorrow.

I'd like to think this will happen, but if those numbers are going to hold true, it better start hammering in about 2 minutes and not stop until tomorrow...

Yeah...a total of 0 inches of the 4-8 that was predicted for this afternoon actually fell.

im heading up there tomorrow AM to scope things out anyone else going up?

If it's untracked, there's a small wind slab on top of a whole lot of facets and a melt/freeze crust. It's going to need more accumulation/wind to become an issue....a.k.a. the 4-8 inches and 23 mph wind NOAA is calling for tonight. Tomorrow could be interesting.

especially with 0 new. should be sweet.

it looks like bp didn't get any of the forecasted snow. snotel shows nothing and winter park is reporting a meager .5. better starts nuking today!

skied the trees / ridgeline betwixt Mines 1 and 2 early this am. Was expecting the wind buff above the trees. But even deep in the trees there's a strange wind-effect layer atop sugar facets all the way down to the gully. Really odd snow. Wanted to keep your skis beneath the crust and the lack of substance beneath made it hard to get on top of it. Not ideal. Add the 15-below temps and sadly, not fun either. Some serious wind effect for sure.

Came over here looking for updated conditions on BP and saw all the chatter about blown snow forecasts (1-2 feet & got nothing). Check out the CO Weather discussion thread...we're getting better at sorting out the good forecasts from the bad:
http://www.tetongravity.com/forums/s...hread&page=112

Also, I have a site called http://www.ColoradoPowderForecast.com I update it every other day or so and try (as a meteorologist, lover of powder, and backcountry skier) to get the forecast right. I was on top of the last storm that slammed Wolf Creek but gave BP nada (four days out I said 1-6" for BP...http://www.coloradopowderforecast.co...e-snow-totals/)

Not trying too toot my own horn too much...just trying to get the forecast right so we're not searching for snow that isn't there.

Saw a 73mph gust on top of Mines Tues/Wed...ouch!

^^^^

schweet.....that call in sick presentation is awesome

Originally Posted by quienes?

skied the trees / ridgeline betwixt Mines 1 and 2 early this am. Was expecting the wind buff above the trees. But even deep in the trees there's a strange wind-effect layer atop sugar facets all the way down to the gully. Really odd snow. Wanted to keep your skis beneath the crust and the lack of substance beneath made it hard to get on top of it. Not ideal. Add the 15-below temps and sadly, not fun either. Some serious wind effect for sure.

That's exactly the way No Name skied last Saturday. It was pretty sketchy since as thin as the snow was, you really wanted to stay high and get out quickly but the snow just wouldn't let it happen.

Heading up tomorrow leaving Boulder ~7:30

Snotel reporting 7 inches from 10:00 to 19:00 today and NWS predicting more by tomorrow AM. Expecting it to be really, really sketchy and unstable above treeline, so sticking to low angle trees.

I may head up in the am for a bit as well.

^Blue jacket, black pants. Change sticker on my helmet. Will be in a group of 4. Not sure what vehicle we'll be in. I really, really want to be conservative with the guys- met two of em in Nepal (they were doing a badass Mt Bike ride of the Annapurna Circuit) but I've never skied with em and it is going to be sketch tomorrow.

^^^
Please report what you guys find up there. May try to head up to the area on Tuesday. Thanks!

Scott, you heading up tomorrow? I'll tag along if you aren't going super early.

Reports from today?

^^ really nice today, not a ton of people either. Skied HHA all day, there was some sluffing but not real deep. Prolly 14" or so, it was still snowing when I left at 1:00, winds were picking up too. Talked with a group that skied Floral, survival skiing was mentioned.

Found up to 10+ inches or so in SW-W-NW aspects below treeline today. We did not ski any other aspects/elevations due to avi conditions. There was a significantly thick depth hoar layer that was 6-12+ inches deep on the aspects we skied, but no slab buildup from this new storm on SW-W-NW aspects meant that there was no reactivity with the DH/TG layer at ground level.

Floral park was pretty meh- not quite enough snow yet in areas that had thick enough trees to be safe.

NW aspects off the east side of the pass (HHA) were $. It was much, much better than I expected.

Who else was up there today? Anybody get out on other aspects or on the west side?

Originally Posted by Kevo

Anybody get out on other aspects or on the west side?

Didn't cross the highway but I surprised to see the number of tracks on and around The Plunge based on CAIC's danger scale. No slides that I saw either.