Thunder Meadows with The Wicked Wizards

<p>Surprisingly good two night trip with a great crew. The crust was present all the way to the top… thinning but not quite reaching breakable unless you were heavy and stompy on the up track in the last 100m or so of elevation. Good decision making kept us safe from the monster windslab on the convexity at the top of Orca bowl… the hand shears were stubborn but boy did it have some energy! Maybe 30-40cms thick, planar failure on the crust. Low angle north facing micro-features were the lines of choice… when we used our brains and looked in the right places the wind blown snow had accumulated just enough to provide some dreamy turns where you only just touched the crust as you finessed each turn. The new snow appeared to be bonding surprisingly well to the crust. </p>

Terrain Ridden

Alpine slopes, Mellow slopes, Open trees, Sunny slopes.

Terrain Avoided

Convex slopes, Steep slopes.

Avalanche Conditions

Rapid temperature rise to near zero degrees or wet surface snow.

Snow Conditions

Crusty, Powder, Wind affected.

Weather Conditions

Sunny, Warm.