Bearclaw Bob's, second posting

[bearclawbob]

Trace of snow

Morning from a lonely town called Cooke city. Most people have left for home. With low snow and being tracked up. But you can find untracked snow in the trees. Its not hard to find. The snowman is asking every one to help with the snow dance. It worked several weeks ago. Today, a weak northerly flow aloft will continue to produce a slight chance of mountains snow showers, but no real accumulation is expected. The snowman has added a day for a chance. So now we are looking at Thursday and now Friday. (30%)

AVALANCHE CONDITIONS: An additional avalanche problem to look out for will be wind slabs. This problem is mainly confined to upper elevation slopes leeward to westerly winds. Fresh wind slabs may be resting over a layer of near surface facets, which will make them especially touchy to human triggers. Triggering a wind slab has the potential to step down to weak snow near the ground, producing a larger and more dangerous avalanche.

Today, weak layers and wind slabs make human triggered avalanches possible and the avalanche danger is rated MODERATE.

 

[bearclawbob]

Didn't win the lottery. OH WELL So life goes on.
The snowman is like a woman, he keeps changing his mind. Now the chance of snow starts on Tuesday goes threw Thursday and he left Friday out. Temp's will be in the teens and single digits at night. Keep the dance going.

AVALANCHE CONDITIONS: An additional avalanche problem to look out for today will be wind slabs. This problem is mainly confined to upper elevation slopes leeward to westerly winds. Yesterday, skiers on Saddle Peak triggered pockets of wind drifted snow that broke 1-2 feet deep. With windy conditions in the Bridger Range this morning, I expect wind slabs to be a growing problem in this area. This problem will be most dangerous in steeper and more consequential terrain. Wind slab avalanches also make great triggers for larger slides failing on weak snow near the ground.

Today, heightened avalanche conditions exist and human triggered avalanches remain possible. For this reason the avalanche danger is rated MODERATE.

 

[cooker2003]

Bob,

Are there avalance safety classes offered at all in Cooke City? We have a group coming from Michigan the week of March 6th and I'd like everyone to at least get some experience with what do look out for, etc. I've been through a class myself, but am the only one out of the 6 of us coming.

 

[bearclawbob]

Dancing my heart out

Well guys, I've danced until i'm tired, but I'm going to keep it up. The snowman is now calling for snow Thursday - Tuesday. If I changed my mind that much. i wouldn't have one anymore.

AVALANCHE CONDITIONS: Avalanche activity and other signs of instability have waned, but the snowpack is unstable and it’s still possible to trigger avalanches. Consequently, for today, the avalanche danger is rated MODERATE.

They put avalanche class on a couple of times a month. We have one coming up on Jan. 16. 2016.

 

[bearclawbob]

Thanks to everyone

Yes it snowed and Thanks to everyone for helping out with the snow dance. Details to follow. Have to plow.

 

[bearclawbob]

still snowing

Here is the update I promised. The mountain has anywhere from 8-12 inches of fresh snow. Us in town received 7-8 inches. Its still snowing. Keep the dance going.

AVALANCHE CONDITIONS:New snow and wind overnight will make human triggered avalanches likely near ridgelines, and a poor snowpack structure make it possible to trigger a larger avalanche. Today, the avalanche danger is CONSIDERABLE on wind loaded slopes and MODERATE on all other slopes.

 

[bearclawbob]

dance,dance,dance

I had a few minutes to give you another update. The riding has been good today. We picked up about a foot from yesterday. The snowman is calling for snow until Tuesday. Saturday looks like the best day for snow.

AVALANCHE CONDITIONS: Weak snow buried by fresh wind slabs will make human triggered avalanches likely, and depth hoar at the ground means larger avalanches are possible. Today, the avalanche danger is CONSIDERABLE on wind loaded slopes and MODERATE on all other slopes.

 

[bearclawbob]

snow and cold

Woke up to snow this morning. The snowman is calling for more snow today, but the chance of snow drops back to 50% till Tuesday and then 30% for Thursday and Friday. The back country is seeing over a foot and a half of fresh snow for the last two days.
The shop and bakery has been really busy for the last few day. The number one seller again is the French Toast.

AVALANCHE CONDITIONS: A secondary problem will be facets near the ground. Although it has been nearly two weeks since the last human triggered avalanche occurred on this layer, it still shouldn’t be trusted. It will be easiest trigger a slide on this layer where the slab is thin. It can then propagate into deeper portions of the snowpack producing a large avalanche.

Today, new snow and wind make human triggered avalanches likely on all wind loaded slopes which have a CONSIDERABLE avalanche danger. Non-wind loaded slopes have a MODERATE avalanche danger.

 

[bearclawbob]

still snowing

Looked out the window this morning and had to go plow. We picked up another 4-5 inches with drifting in town. The snowman is still calling for a few more inches for the next several day. It also going to get warmer. Monday will see the mid 30's.

AVALANCHE CONDITIONS: While most slides will stay confined to the upper layers of the snowpack, we can’t forget about the weak, faceted layer near the ground. This layer is capped by a dense slab and is becoming harder to impact. However, unstable results in stability tests along with the occasional human triggered avalanche are bull’s eye information this layer is still problematic and untrustworthy.

Today, very dangerous avalanche conditions exist on wind loaded slopes steeper than 35 degrees which have a HIGH avalanche danger. All other slopes have a CONSIDERABLE avalanche danger.

Mom's motor sports are back in town. Glad to see you guys. Be safe.

 

[jmom]

The flatlanders have invaded Cooke again. With the weekend traffic rolling out, the fresh powder playground will be all ours. With 29 in our group this week, it is time to track this place up.

Since we were here last there was a nice dump, covering all of the tracks making a wonderland of fresh powder landscapes.

Here are a few pictures from some of the guys that made the trek for mountain powder this week.

Overnight a fast but potent storm dropped 6-10 inches of low density snow in the mountains. At 4 a.m. snow appears to be tapering off, but the mountains could see an additional 1-2 inches by late morning. Currently, temperatures range from the mid-teens to low 20s F and winds are blowing 15-30 mph out of the W-NW with ridgetop gusts pushing 40 mph. Today, a break in the weather will allow temps to warm into the mid to upper 20s F under partly cloudy skies. Winds will continue to blow 15-30 mph out of the W-NW with stronger gusts along the ridgetops. No new snow is expected today, but another storm arrives tomorrow. The mountains could pick up 4-6 inches tomorrow into Tuesday.

 

[dooman92]

J, sure fresh snow and I missed the bus, rub it in.. Tell that angry American to track up my part!

 

[bearclawbob]

Keep dancing

Woke up to a wrecker call right off the bat. Then had to come back and put the track back on the skid loader. YUCK. It took 3 of us about 3.5 hours to do that. The snowman is calling for snow all week with a big storm coming in tomorrow. So lets keep the snow dance going.

AVALANCHE CONDITIONS:I just got back from two days of investigating the snowpack around Cooke City. Well over two feet of snow has fallen since Thursday with SWE totals of 1.5”. Winds have been swirling and loading many upper elevation slopes, but avalanche activity has been minimal. A skier on Sunday triggered a small slide in windblown snow near Lulu Pass (photo). I dug pits to the ground looking for instability in the depth hoar. I found the depth hoar but not the instability. This layer is hard to trigger now that it is buried under five feet of dense snow. Although this layer is gaining strength, I don’t trust it. Thinner areas (windblown or rocky) can be trigger points for large avalanches. Alex explains this in his video that he made during his days off of touring south Cooke City over the weekend.

For today, given the new snow and wind, the avalanche danger is rated CONSIDERABLE on wind-loaded slopes and MODERATE on all others.

The rental sleds are doing very well and I would like to thank everyone that has rented and that is going to rent sleds, beacons, avy packs, probes, shovels and etc. A BIG THANK YOU

Don't forget that I do carry Arctic cat parts along with some polaris and Ski doo for my rentals.

 

[jmom]

Fresh powder abound for an afternoon ride in Cooke City Montana.

We have a huge group staying at the Super 8 and enjoying the hospitality at the BearClaw Bakery at BearClaw Bobs Cat House. The east end of town is where you will find the best deals and the nicest people. Check out Bear Claw for the best deals on sled rentals, gear rentals(beacons, probes, air packs, parts, sled accessories) and great food. There is also a heated shop with tools available for use. When you visit Cooke, check out the host with the most.

 

[bearclawbob]

WOW

It was a huge surprise this morning to wake up to a foot of snow in town. The snowman didn't call for it until this morning. The mountain received about 2 feet of fresh powder. Lets hold off on the snow dance until Monday. The snowman is calling for partly cloudy skies for several days and by Saturday and Sunday we have another chance of snow. By Monday through Wednesday we will see partly cloudy skies again.

AVALANCHE CONDITIONS: All ready this morning .3-.4 inches of snow water equivalency fell and this will easily double with today’s storm. The upper weak layer in the snowpack started avalanching yesterday before this storm. It does not take a science degree to deduce that today will be worse. Throughout our advisory area the avalanche danger is rated HIGH on slopes that are wind-loaded since natural avalanches are likely. On slopes without a wind-load the danger is rated CONSIDERABLE.

 

[jmom]

Do you feel lucky? Well, do ya punk?

These guys sure have luck on their side. They are riding the deep mountain powder in Montana. One guy even cleaned up playing poker at the Butte. Me, I am wrenching as my sled went down Tuesday.

29 Flatlanders have had a week for the memory banks here in Cooke. With the tracked and packed snow from early January well below the new 4-5 ft of fresh, these guys have struck it.

A big thank you to Bob and Terri at BearClaw and the Super 8for hosting our BIG group. When your in Cooke these are the people to see for all of your needs and information, a really great place.

 

[bearclawbob]

NO SUN

The snowman called for partly cloudy skies today. Woke up to snow and it snowed for several hours and the wind came up and cooled down even more. Never saw the sun. If the snowman is right now, we should see sun tomorrow, while Saturday and Sunday will see snow again.

AVALANCHE CONDITIONS:New snow in the past week and strong wind over the last 48 hours has put stress on an unstable snowpack. Human triggered avalanches are very likely on wind loaded slopes and natural avalanches are possible. Today, the avalanche danger is HIGH on all wind loaded slopes and CONSIDERABLE on all other slopes throughout the advisory area.

Again, I would like to thank all of MOM's crew ( Rick,Jacob and John) and the guys he had brought out. All 29 of them. Tonight they are getting the world famous PRIME RIB for dinner. MMMMMMMMM A BIG THANK YOU.

 

[bearclawbob]

SUN

The snowman was right today, The sun is out and its going to be a great day to ride. Yesterday was tough to see, with the wind blowing the snow around and snowing.at times. We could see snow this weekend. Monday through Friday with Saturday having a chance of snow. The temp's are going to be in the high 20's to lower 30's all week.
AVALANCHE CONDITIONS: Over a week ago, the snowpack was on vacation and free from stress. During that time, avalanches were less likely and less activity may have conveyed a sense of stability. In the past week over 1.5-2” of snow water equivalence (SWE) was added to the snowpack and created very unstable conditions. The gradual, as opposed to rapid, addition of weight over the last week is a sign that the snowpack is sensitive to small changes. Loading from snow and wind have put our weak snowpack on edge. There are now more areas across a slope that you could tip the scale and trigger an avalanche. The uncertainty is low -- human triggered avalanches are likely and have high potential to be large. Avalanche terrain should be avoided. Today, avalanche danger is CONSIDERABLE on all slopes throughout the advisory area. Danger may increase on wind loaded slopes this afternoon with forecasted strong winds.
MOM'S group pulled out last around 10:30 last night. Bearclaw /bakery and the Super 8 wants to thank them again for coming and staying with us. Have a safe trip home.

 

[bearclawbob]

partly cloudy

Morning from Bearclaw/Bakery and the Super 8. If you are looking for a great deal on rooms, don't forget to mention the SnoWest discount. You can save a great amount of money.
Went out riding Saturday and Sunday. You heard that right. I went riding. Found lots of area's that hadn't seen a sled since the last snow. Sunday we picked up about 3 inches on the mountain and maybe an inch in town. For the next couple of days we are going to see partly cloudy skies with the temp's in the mid 20's to upper 30's. By Friday we are looking for a chance of snow through the weekend.

AVALANCHE CONDITIONS: Besides avoiding wind slabs there are two weak layers to dig for and test. Small facets buried 1-2 feet under the surface and large facets (depth hoar) near the ground. Over the last week avalanches have occurred on both…a near miss in Frazier Basin, a fatality in Cedar Basin and a snowmobiler triggered slide in Buck Ridge.

Given the recent snow, wind and avalanche activity, the avalanche danger is rated CONSIDERABLE on all wind-loaded slopes and MODERATE on all others.

I've got a new shipment of BCA radio's in, call if interested. They won't last long.

 

[bearclawbob]

RECAP

Here is a recap for yesterday and today. We picked up approx. a foot of snow in town and approx. 2 feet on the mountain. Was out plowing all day yesterday. We picked up 2-3 inches over night. The snowman is calling for cooler temps at night (below zero) again. By Wednesday through Friday we have another shot of snow.

AVALANCHE CONDITIONS:While most avalanches will stay confined to the new snow, there is the possibility of slides failing on deeper layers in the pack. A natural avalanche observed in the northern Gallatin Range last week is a good reminder of what’s still possible. Triggering a slide on deeper weak layers will be most likely in rocky, less uniform terrain where the snowpack is shallower and weaker. If an avalanche is triggered on a deeper layer, it will likely result in a large and dangerous avalanche.

Today, human triggered avalanches are likely on wind loaded slopes steeper than 35 degrees which have a CONSIDERABLE avalanche danger. All other slopes have a MODERATE avalanche danger.

 

[bryceraisanen]

Rode cooke all weekend. Best conditions i ever had there. Over bumper deep all day saturday an sunday. If u know how to get off the trail, still tons of riding to do!