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  1. #1
    Join Date
    Nov 2007
    Location
    London Mountain
    Posts
    1,159

    Whistler Pineapple

    To all of those wondering what it was like on the mountain today, here's a little recap. It was a very "coastal" kind of day. For those of you who tried and failed to get up today, don't worry. No good skiing was missed. Ski penetration on the Goat Path was almost waist deep (on my 190 AK Maidens) foot penetration was armpit deep. Unfortunately it was unskiable coastal shmoo with 10 cm deep rain runnels.

    Winds above 100 km at Roundhouse level, gusting over 150 on the Peak. Gusts to 95 at top of Garbo, gusts over 80 at top of Creekside. All day.

    Snowed at least 45cm overnight midmountain, then switched to absolute torrential pissing rain in the AM, with FL going to the Peak and staying there in the afternoon. By lunch time it was isothermal shit everywhere. Precip totals for the day probably around 55 cms of snow and 30 or 40 mils of rain.

    Avalanche hazard was (and still is) Extreme. Many naturals, remotes and sympathetic slabs up to 40 cms (1's and 2's) on all aspects and all elevations, on slopes as low angle as 25 degrees.

    Explosive testing produced wet slabs up to Size 2 below treeline. Notable slides include North Face High (under Don't Miss) sliding all the way to the Saddle (natural) and a 1 kg explosive charge releasing a slab from the skiers left of the Diehard AC line (below Pika's Traverse uphill of the Bomb Shack) all the way across the Harmony Waterfall over to underneath the Harmony Chair (thats around 100 metres wide)! We didn't even go near the Peak or Harmony today, but safe to say that an extensive and large natural avalanche cycle is underway. With 2's popping off natural below treeline, who know's what's going on in the high alpine, but it isn't anything to mess with.

    On the plus side, the base was 100cms yesterday and is 140 today (we'll see what it is after tonight's rain). It's a safe bet that the buried surface hoar and/or facets are gone, ski out is on to the Creek and Village, and we should come out of this with more snow than we went in with.

    FL forecasted to be between Chic Pea and Roundhouse tonight, with another 40 to 50 of rain/snow before it all blows through tomorrow. A northwest flow could be coming next. Could be epic when it clears, or it could be glazed ice top to bottom.

    All in all one of the wettest days I've seen on the mountain in my 10 years, and probably the highest hazard I've ever seen. A day for single malt and bong hits, not skiing.

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Oct 2003
    Posts
    3,304
    And a good day for chimichangas.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Jan 2006
    Location
    UBC-Koots-Cal
    Posts
    301
    Thanks for the update.

    Made the 5:30 no-go call from Vancouver this morning, pretty glad we did after this and other reports of the hill and the road.

    Sounds like we'll come out of this with a good base started for the rest of the season.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Jan 2007
    Location
    The Pacific Northwet
    Posts
    576

    Clownshoe = W/B Hero

    Clownshoe,



    FANTASTIC, Detailed Beta!!!

    Nothing beats an agent-in-place.

    Please keep it coming...all season.

    Thank You In Advance.
    Enjoy Every Sandwich - Warren Zevon

    .

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Sep 2006
    Location
    Comox,BC
    Posts
    679
    Sweet, Thanks for the good Beta man. makes me feel a bit better about not being able to be in whistler today. i read the 44 new cm's in the report today and when "FUCK" but suspected it would soon become shit.

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Sep 2006
    Location
    Comox,BC
    Posts
    679
    Quote Originally Posted by Schmear View Post
    And a good day for chimichangas.
    when is it not a good day for chimichangas

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Aug 2005
    Location
    British Alberlumbia
    Posts
    1,352
    Thanks Clownshoe for the beta. Just want to let you know that it's situation identical on the other side of the province. Unskiable caca. Yesterday there was about 50 cm of blower, but when the temperature went from -14 to -1 in the space of 2 hours last night, you just knew with the continued precip, it was not going to be very pleasant today. The roofalanches all night reinforced that feeling. The drive to work was heinous and the skiing was the same. Numerous slides to size 3 with blasting and naturals. Poor visibility and raining steadily to 1400m. Lots of settlements and shooting cracks.
    But hey, by Saturday's opening, it probably can't be any worse. It can only get better. And those numerous slides from the Polar Chutes and Lizard Headwall probably doubled the snowpack on some of the ski runs in 15 seconds.
    "if it's called tourist season, why can't we just shoot them?"

  8. #8
    forest Guest
    thanks for the update.

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Dec 2003
    Location
    Jackson, WY
    Posts
    5,642
    thorough update - thanks.

    sounds almost like a repeat of what happened in Bariloche back in September. awesome storm cycle, then torrid amounts of rain and wind- resulting in what looked to be powder but ended up being some nasty weird glazed slush ice.

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
    Posts
    751
    I stood around creekside for around an hour this morning then went and played monopoly. No real skiing.

  11. #11
    Join Date
    Oct 2007
    Location
    Formerly Whistler, now East Van
    Posts
    90
    Thanks for the extensive beta, Clownshoe.

    I pretty much figured it was a wash when I took off my helmet and saw the amount of ice that had accumulated on my head while waiting in line.

    I just hope that we get some dense snow to cover up the refrozen debris that will no doubt be everywhere now.

  12. #12
    Join Date
    Oct 2006
    Location
    Vancouver, BC
    Posts
    144
    Thanks Clownshoe,

    Not only did come through with another killer update, you also made it A LOT easier for me to plug away at my studies down in Van. Hopefully conditions improve later this week after I write three exams...

  13. #13
    Join Date
    Feb 2005
    Location
    North Vancouver/Whistler
    Posts
    13,985
    Now what a great day that would have been for an avalanche class .. and trashbags.

  14. #14
    Join Date
    Oct 2003
    Location
    Van City and Whistler
    Posts
    2,026
    Keep these updates coming. These are awesome.
    A week and a half still on set. Then freedom for the season.

  15. #15
    Join Date
    Aug 2006
    Location
    North Vancouver
    Posts
    1,033
    Quote Originally Posted by Squirrel99 View Post
    sounds almost like a repeat of what happened in Bariloche back in September. awesome storm cycle, then torrid amounts of rain and wind- resulting in what looked to be powder but ended up being some nasty weird glazed slush ice.
    Very good comparison for sure.

    Clownshoe ... your one of my new best friends ... thanks for the great info once again!

  16. #16
    Join Date
    Sep 2006
    Location
    Vancouver, BC
    Posts
    1,107
    Parked in lot 8 at 7:45, skied down to the Wizard, it wasn't opening cause of freezing rain (and solar wasn't going to open because of possible lightning). Walked to the village, sat around in the hail for about 45 mins wondering if anything would open, knowing that the rain was coming and the window for any good skiing was rapidly closing. Freezing rain wasn't going to have anything open until at least 9-9:30, no high alpine cause of winds and the possible lightning. So we pulled the chute, but had to hike up the hill to lot 8 where it started raining halfway up. Then drove 3 hours back to vancouver. It was a hell of a day.

  17. #17
    Join Date
    Jul 2004
    Location
    R.O.C.
    Posts
    4,026
    That's what I call an information intensive report!
    Calmer than you dude

  18. #18
    Join Date
    Aug 2007
    Location
    Whistler
    Posts
    1,038
    This weather makes me feel a little less bummed that my knee is in recovery. Hopefully it will produce a better base (though it doesn't sound like it from what you're saying).

  19. #19
    Join Date
    Oct 2007
    Location
    vancouver
    Posts
    601
    thanks for the info... a truly brutal day. we did one run from blackcomb gondy, only cause we waited in line so long and then headed home.

  20. #20
    Join Date
    Oct 2003
    Location
    Seattle
    Posts
    1,341

    Thumbs up

    Quote Originally Posted by Bring On The Snow View Post
    when is it not a good day for chimichangas
    BRILLIANT!

    B)

    Can we get beta like this from all mtns???? Nice work!

  21. #21
    Join Date
    Oct 2003
    Location
    Seattle
    Posts
    5,352
    Quote Originally Posted by Squirrel99 View Post
    thorough update - thanks.

    sounds almost like a repeat of what happened in Bariloche back in September. awesome storm cycle, then torrid amounts of rain and wind- resulting in what looked to be powder but ended up being some nasty weird glazed slush ice.
    That's the first thing I thought of as well. There's nothing like a huge amount of rainy pow to damped your spirits. On the plus side: the season is early and you guys are well on your way to a nice base depth!

  22. #22
    Join Date
    Oct 2003
    Location
    in ewe
    Posts
    1,285
    Same thing happened down here, 25" in 2 days, then rain to about 5000 feet. But we got lucky, the upper mountain never got rained on and the temps are falling again. Should set up for a bomber base, as in bullet proof and frozen not to melt until June kind of base.

  23. #23
    Join Date
    Nov 2005
    Location
    Fernie
    Posts
    85
    Saturday's opening Nesta? How viable does that seem? my computer and fillings are being shakin' out by your control work here at my office looking bleak down low here.

  24. #24
    Join Date
    Sep 2001
    Location
    ask the midget
    Posts
    2,496
    I'll be skiing whistler this sat & sun as part of a very odd job interview. I have never skied there before & obviously was hoping for something other than rain soaked ice. How is this weekend looking on the forecast?

    Oh, and the interviewer and I ar staying at a place called tyrol ski club, any beta on it?

    Thanks all!

  25. #25
    Join Date
    Feb 2004
    Posts
    7,221
    Quote Originally Posted by Frozen View Post
    I'll be skiing whistler this sat & sun as part of a very odd job interview. I have never skied there before & obviously was hoping for something other than rain soaked ice. How is this weekend looking on the forecast?

    Oh, and the interviewer and I ar staying at a place called tyrol ski club, any beta on it?

    Thanks all!
    bring your ice skates. freezing levels are dropping back down after 24hrs of pouring rain!

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