Quick report
Climbed AG on Saturday the 16th and reached the summit around 9:30. Strong winds and cold temperatures were the main theme of the day, with several groups turning around just above Helen Lake, although conditions improved somewhat above the Red Banks where the wind was noticeably less intense. There are 3 or 4 nice filled in mini-chutes on the climbers right of red banks that were all in good condition. Some parties still chose to ascend via the notch, but the Konwakiton Glacier bergschrund looked increasingly open and unappealing when viewed from above I spent about an hour on the summit before descending to just below Misery Hill, where I took a look into Trinity Chutes and waited in hopes that the snow might soften. I dropped into Left Heart around 1:30, but wind and persistent cold kept the snow hard and challenging to ski until roughly 500 feet above Helen Lake, where conditions improved significantly. Misery Hill itself was largely burned out and not worth skiing, while Trinity Chutes looked appealing and well worth a return visit on a warmer day with better softening. Throughout the day I observed a notable amount of snow transport, mostly in the form of small ice-like particles, despite how locked up and frozen the upper mountain felt. Bootpacks were gradually filling in with this transported material. I also observed a small slab-like feature forming on the lookers left side of Left Heart, but upon closer inspection it showed no reactivity. Lower mountain conditions skied well overall, though route selection mattered as some lines quickly dried out. I ended up getting drawn into a good-looking shot that quickly deteriorated, requiring a short boot back up to regain my exit. Sun cups are becoming increasingly prevalent, especially in the thousand feet of snow above Horse Camp. (Thanks Nick, Hayden and Eric for coffee shop beta!)
Weather
- Air Temp
- 10-20
- Cloud Cover
- few
- Wind Loading
- light
- Snow Avail For Transport
- small smounts