The Squamidian Report – May13 / 17
 
Issue #781

Including:
The Ontarion (but not this week)

Hi All,

You know, I had thought that there was a lot of snow up in the mountains. Then I took that spotter scope up onto the gondola deck and had a good look. Boy was I wrong. I have been using words like 'incredible' and 'stupendous' and so on. They don't cover it. There just aren't any words that can describe the amount and depth of the snow on and under the high ridges. When looking at Goat Ridge and Sky Pilot Mt from a distance and with unaided eyes it looks like there sure is a lot of snow. When looking through a scope you can see just how much there is. Think of the most you could possibly think of and then double it. There are hanging cornices that have bent and distorted under their weight that are twice as think as the hight of the trees down lower where the trees are. There are vertical walls of snow where part of the slab has broken away that appear to be 4 or 5 times deeper than the height of those trees. I don't have the words to describe it.

Now 50 or 60 or 80 ft of snow didn't actually fall. Well, perhaps the 50 or so did up there, but what has happened is that as well as the snowfall, the winds have picked up the snow from the windward side and built those cornices and dumped the remaining load onto the snowfields. Those are not places anyone would want to be this time of year when all that snow has become unstable, but is sure looks neat from a distance.

And guess what... while the snow is definitely melting up there it is also being added to. On Friday we were enduring a cold heavy rain down here in the valley that was heavy snow higher up. In fact, when riding up the gondola by the time we reached tower 7 we were out of the rain and into the snow. Up on the deck the crews were busy shoveling about 4 inches of snow and by the time we were done with our coffee another 2 inches had accumulated and it was still snowing hard. It finally gave up about mid afternoon but come on, its mid May out there, not mid December.

If there is any silver lining to this years lack of spring and persistent winter, its that I am in no danger what so ever of wearing out my motorcycle.
doug
****
Have a good one..
the doug
The Fine Print!
The articles in these issues are the sole property of the persons writing them and should be respected as such.