Conditions Report
This conditions report was written on February 12th, the morning after
With the new Raven lift going in, access to the area of the Whitewater Ski Resort, British Columbia, backcountry known as 5 mile has become easier this year. The chair goes to the ridge that used to take 20 to 30 minutes to reach on skins. With five and a half inches of what looked like hero snow having fallen over the last week, and a forecast of another three during the day, it looked like a good day to get out there.
We headed up aiming to get a good spot in the Whitewater parking lot, but as we reached the lot, it was obvious that it was going to be a busy day up there. It turned out there was a junior downhill race at the ski hill. We met up with two more of our crew, made a plan to ski a burn on the far side of 5 mile, checked our gear, and hopped on the Raven, just after first chair.
There was full cloud cover, but it was high and not that thick at 9:15 am when we transitioned to skins at the ridge. The snow was 4-6 inches of heavier powder off a set skin track. Being the first group out meant we had the bonus of the extra snow on the skin track, but didn’t have to set trail. The first down lap was at the farthest north end of “The Fingers”, old growth trees to the bottom, split by avalanche paths with 2-5 year old trees in them. Cam dropped in first and we could hear his whoops echoing in the bowl. The 8-10 inches of snow that had blown in to this zone meant it we could hardly feel the large rain crust that sits below it, and even the other tracks weren’t noticeable on the way down.
After drifting skiers right, we reached the base of the burn. A wildfire burned here in 2012, creating a perfect playground.
The wind had increased and was transporting the lighter snow that had fallen over the last 24 hours, and had started to fall again as we climbed, loading lee features. There was some avalanche debris to be seen from the last big natural cycle, but no real concerns for the day. The second lap was better than the first, and we rode without crossing a track to the valley floor. There were some very happy riders at the lunch stop, to say the least. 8-10 inches of full hero snow on top of a rain crust that seems to be everywhere makes for a more stable snow pack, and fun riding.
The only thing left to do was to slog up the Acidopholus skin track, back to the ridge and ride down to the bar. An awesome hero snow powder day in the Whitewater backcountry this season. Is winter really back in the Kootenays? With more snow and cold temps in the forecast, it seems so!
