Racing Horses to Window Shop

Today in the Crowsnest Pass, riding conditions were firm and challenging. A hard overnight refreeze left a thick crust on the surface that our sleds couldn't break through. Once we climbed to 2100 m the crust started to soften and the riding became slightly easier. Around noon, the sun had finally started to warm up and soften the snow surface enough to keep our mountain sleds cool. When we arrived, it was -2 at the Atlas staging area; by the time we left, it was +10. We observed light snow transport at the ridgetop and a light cool breeze at 2200 m. The wind likely helped keep the snow cool, which added to the time it took to soften for us after the overnight freeze. The skies were clear and sunny, and we didn't see any precipitation through the day today. We noted numerous new wet-loose avalanches on solar slopes, and 1 size 2.5 persistent slab triggered by a cornice fall in the Window Mountain bowl. The snow pack structure is crusty. There are 40 to 60 cm above the atmospheric river crust formed in late March. The snow surface is a crust, and there is two additional temperature crusts below it. This is sitting on the 40-cm-thick late-March crust. Below the late-March crust, the snow is well settled and strong.