Hudson Bay Mountain Alpine Powder?

Map for Mountain Information Network report: Hudson Bay Mountain Alpine Powder?

Snow conditions

Riding quality was:
Good
Snow conditions were:
  • Crusty
  • Hard
  • Powder
  • Wind affected
We rode:
  • Alpine slopes

Information

The day was:
  • Sunny
Avalanche conditions
  • Slab avalanches today or yesterday.

Comments

This was our first field day up Hudson Bay Mountain, and what a nice day. We skinned up through the trees below the prairie to get a feel for how much snow is over the Feb 10 rain crust(25 cm) and even ran into a group doing an AST course. Once out in the open alpine the wind affect is actually not as bad as normal, for the most part soft snow. We skinned above crater lake and had a good look at the bowl. We dug a quick pit to look for the Feb 10 crust, which didn't exist at this location. There were a couple old(24-48 hr) windslab avalanches from under the cornice that were a pretty good indicator that the hazard is real. The cornice is large and shouldn't be taken lightly.