Hi all,

We just finished a classic Wapta ski traverse from Peyto Lake to Sherbrooke Lake March 14-18, 2023.

We started the day after a recent storm delivered up to 30cm of new snow in the Bow Summit Area. We had sunny conditions with seasonably cold temperatures and minimal winds. We skied supported and moderately steep terrain between 1700m and 3150m.

We saw evidence of a widespread avalanche cycle which occurred during the storm on March 13th. The aftermath displayed a myriad of slab avalanches out of very steep lee and often rocky alpine terrain in the size 2-3 range. Many of these appeared to have been triggered by cornice falls. A more recent sz 2 slab avalanche, triggered by a serac fall that made it across the existing up track at the crux pinch on route to the Balfour high col.

Not surprising, the coverage on glaciers was much thinner than normal. We measured the below average values with a probe all along the classic itinerary mainly to get a sense of distribution:

• Toe of Peyto Glacier: 90cm
• 2400m on Peyto Glacier: 140cm
• 2700m on top of the Bow glacier: 180cm
• 2900m on mount Gordon: 200cm
• Vulture glacier: 160cm
• Toe Balfour Glacier: 160cm
• Balfour high col and crux: 180cm
• Waputik and Daily Glacier: >240cm
• Sherbrooke Lake elevation: 140cm

As you can see there is more snow on the BC side. Of course you can find deeper spots, you can also find much thinner ones! Every wind exposed bulges was very thin and in the order of 80cm, even in the deeper snowpack areas. Needless to say, we roped up a fair amount despite the perfect visibility.

Crevasse bridges were thinner than usual and most importantly much softer than your typical spring. It will be interesting to see how these faceted snow bridges fair into the upcoming spring. Fingers crossed that we get more snow before Spring really sets in.

All in all, a good start to the ski traverse season in the Rockies. Conditions are currently manageable and some excellent skiing can still be found on shady aspects.

Happy Spring!

David Lussier
acmg mountain guide
www.summitmountainguides.com