JFS Canyon

In an effort to avoid Middle Fork bushwhacks we purchased a sled this year. It definitely has paid dividends, and between that and carefully selected Middle Fork days we managed to avoid any true encounters with the boosh this season. That changed today. 33*F in the morning in the JF Stevens Canyon; 40*F when we returned. It felt warmer than that throughout the tour. Guessing the cloud cover trapped the heat overnight into the morning. Skies remained mostly cloudy all day; the sun was able to poke out here and there. For the most part we had unlimited visibility all day. Snow on all aspects had a warming thermal effect up to 7000ft (excellent snowball/snowman making snow). Skin track from 1 or 2 days prior was completely filled in some locations, although no significant wind loading was noted (only minimal surface snow was transporting). Winds remained gusty on ridges and peaks throughout the day; by 2pm were gusting over 25 mph (judging by wet finger wind meter). Even with the winds, temperatures felt mild. Surface crust present on all aspects, up to 7000ft. Despite the warming, we observed no signs of instability. Quick hand pits revealed no slab-like quality in the snowpack and despite my hardest efforts to get something to pop on ski cuts and jumping on steep skin tracks I was unable to get anything to react. Ski quality was fair above 6200ft; below this it was poor at best. In some areas the snow and crust was supportive enough for some decent piste carving. Between the poor snow quality, the low snow pack, and the mega boosh, we had a top 10 infamous Middle Fork exits. Time to put the touring skis away for a few days. Also, we ran into one solo skier who was headed up to exit the NW run and they mentioned possibly doing a second lap (the whole thing(!)). After our experience on the exit, we all agreed if they truly did a second lap they are either crazy, or crazy.

JFS Canyon

Quick report

Weather