24 HR SNOW TOTALS:
LOBO: 6"
LOOKOUT: 5.4"
ANDESITE: 5"
BAVARIA: 3.5"
3-5" of new snow has fallen in the last 24 hours, with a few inches blowing in yesterday afternoon, and another one or two early this morning. More snow is expected all day long, so keep an eye out, it really could start to amount to quite the pow day. Strong Westerly winds to 45mph yesterday scoured a lot of the South Face, and unevenly loaded areas with large drifts. Most of this snow got caught at mid mountain in the trees. This morning, winds have calmed significantly, and the last inch or two has fallen much more evenly than the first. Coming in from the SouthWest, it seems this snow is favoring areas of the mountain where the weather has a chance to swirl and settle in, a good sign for the North Side, parts of Andesite, the Bowl and such. Roads were bad yesterday, with a bus blocking Lone Mtn. Trail in the afternoon.
WIND AND TEMPS: Temps should range today between 14°F at the summit, and 32°F at the base, with mid mountain temps around 20°F, and winds have calmed finally, expected out of the Southwest, Gusting to around 30mph at the summit.
The weather is expected to intensify later in the day, blowing through the night once again. Constant wind in combination with new snow makes a lot of work for our Patrol, and keeps us on our toes in the search for the best turns. We can only hope this new layer is bonding well with our base, and healing up our terrain after all that sun. Dress for storm skiing and low viz, and be prepared to ski by brail as that firm base is not far beneath the surface and winds will have prevented even coverage, especially on Upper Mountain terrain. More of the same for the next three days at least!
As always, remember to stay safe, and have fun out there.
