South Summit Creek

Riding quality was:

OK

Snow conditions were:

• Crusty
• Wind affected

We rode:

• Mellow slopes
• Open trees
• Sunny slopes

We stayed away from:

• Alpine slopes
• Convex slopes
• Steep slopes

The day was:

• Cloudy
• Foggy
• Stormy
• Warm
• Windy

When we arrived at outhouse hill the area was relatively clear and calm. We decided to skin up the south end of Summit Creek Hill and dig a snow pit while staying fairly close to the highway. We noticed a substantial ice crust near surface that supported our weight on skis, but was easily pierced with poles into a somewhat hollow layer beneath. Newly deposited snow was easily swept away from its surface.

We could see a storm system coming in from the south by 1:00 pm and decided to pack up from our snow pit and follow our tracks out. The wind picked up to around 50 km/hour and snow made for poor visibility.

We completed a snow pit near the base of Summit Creek Hill.

Slope: 25°

Ambient temp: -2.7°C

Snow temp: -2°C to -2.5°C

Snow depth: 1.55 to 1.65 m

Major characteristics: fresh snow on top of a 2 cm ice crust, underlain by bonded snow increasing in density with depth

CT27 RP at 25 cm depth