January 9, 2003, Hurricane Ridge

Timing (and a little bit of altitude) appear to be everything.  Early this morning, the south slopes at the Ridge were bullet proof.  Climbing (up without going backwards) was a challenge.  Sunny slopes had a thin layer of soft corn atop the hard crust and climbing was better, but there was the slippery step every now and then.  A run at 10:30 on the sunny south slope was buttery corn on a firm base.  The mid-day climb was still on a firm base, but the upper layer was giving way.  By mid afternoon, the south side was more like a 2 inch layer of mashed potatoes on a just-barely-firm-enough base until about 5000 ft, then the mash went clear down to the ground.

In the early afternoon, I took a run in a chute on the north side.  There was an inch of "sucker powder" on top of a bullet-proof glaze.  That run was a loud one.

Sooo, if you're going out tomorrow, hit the midday and stay high and south.

This weekend could be a mess if the freezing level comes down without much precip.

Snow amounts in the Olympics (at least at Hurricane Ridge are sufficient, but low - bare rock abound - so ride with caution.

Bill G