[MCR] Rockies: Chickadee Valley

[Public Mountain Conditions Report]

Went up the Chickadee Valley today, Saturday March 31. 

Only a few cm of recent storm snow at the trailhead but by the time we got to beneath the moraines at 2000 m there was 55 cm of recent storm snow. This snow was sitting on a sun crust a few cm thick that we could feel easily with our ski pole. I believe this crust was buried March 29.

Upon investigation we found an Easy compression test, Sudden Planar in character, on this crust. The failure layer was surface hoar sitting on the crust. We also saw a Hard, Sudden Planar shear down 110 cm on the Valentine's Day surface Hoar. 

Considering this and adding the fact that the sun had come out and was beating down into this south facing valley we beat a hasty retreat without committing to the steep slopes of the moraines and abandoned our idea of going up the glacier to Chimney Col.

We cautiously skied a bit along the trim lines on the edges of the west facing runout zones lower in the valley. The snow was already becoming moist there from the solar radiation.

We saw two size 2 loose snow avalanches coming off steep east facing cliffs in the afternoon.

In the next while I'm going to stay away from the west and south facing slopes that has this March 29 buried crust.

Mark Klassen
ACMG/IFMGA Mountain Guide
Banff-Lake Louise, Canada

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