Updated Jan 21, 2025
Current Status: Much More Solid With a Creamy Top
The Bottom Line: Significant, steady warming from the past 5-6 days mean a bit of instability has firmed up and south faces are a go with creamy, corny, semi-crusty and runnelled riding surface.
My Recommendation: You can definitely step out into bigger terrain but just because the snow won’t slide, doesn’t mean that you won’t. North faces and slopes out of the sun will still have a pretty icy top layer that won’t be any fun. Stick to solar aspects—those facing the sun.
Field Report: Vast Improvement Over the Previous Report
On the January 15 update we talked about the massive breakable crust. Well I checked it out on the south aspect and the sun did it’s magic on it and broke it down, which helped round the lower snowpack a bit more. Everything was pretty solid and I was happy with how it bonded from last week.
On January 20 I dug a pit on the lower part of a ridge facing S at around 1800m on Whistler mountain. There was a nice northerly wind about 5-10 km/hr, and a small disturbance in the high pressure caused the first clouds of the week.
What I Found (The Snow Pit)
- The Event: Five days of spring-like conditions after a massive rain event, on top of pristine powder causing a very wild few weeks, weather-wise. I swear the alliteration was unintentional!
- The Surface: A breakable crust that had broken down into slushy ice chunks at the surface and helped heal lower layers through the rounding process.
- 40 cm down: softer snow, but well bonded to upper layers so it wasn’t much concern. It was also more dense than before showing a positive trend toward more stability.
This is a vast improvement on before where the thick crust had preserved the snowpack below which had yet to bond well, giving me a bit of trepidation before dealing with anything close to where that crust could break up and possibly step down. But all that movement had solidified, so I figured it was the right call to step up the confidence and be stoked on a stronger snowpack.
When I performed a compression test, the block didn’t have any failure points and stayed rigid throughout. That’s always a good sign.
Watch the Analysis
I filmed the return to the pit from last week and take you through the decision process. Hopefully it helps people understand the snowpack around Whistler a bit better.
The Verdict: Stay Sunny and Corny
North faces usually get all the love but this is the time of year and type of snowpack that suggests seeking out a southerly snowpack (again, accidental alliteration!!).
Want to Learn More?
If the terms “Compression Test” or “Pencil Hard” sound like a foreign language to you, you aren’t alone. Understanding what the snow is telling you is the key to a lifetime of safe exploration. Explore some of our posts on avalanche safety.
Check out our Beyond the Boundaries intro course to build your foundation before you step out of bounds.
Disclaimer: This report represents a single point of data in time and space. It is NOT a substitute for the official avalanche forecast. Always check Avalanche Canada for the daily bulletin before you head out.
