Quartz Creek - Jan 3

[fnDan]

We rode Quartz on Friday and Saturday. Both days were great. Lots of deep snow but I still managed to find some rocks hidden underneath. The trail was groomed on Saturday morning. Lots of trucks n sleds on Friday but not many on Saturday. We were going to ride Silent on Saturday but it was -25 and the long ride in would have been pretty cold.

Coming home we ended up in a parade on the #1 as a driver for Challenger Freight wouldn't go any faster than 40km/hr. That was brutal. No hazard lights on, just putting down the road. Even the other truckers were wailing on the horns as they passed him. The driver probably got an earful when he stopped at the husky in Golden. Talked to a guy in Tim Hortons that said he was driving 40 - 50 km/hr even before Revy.

The highway around Lake Louise was pretty slick.

 

[sumx54]

Great Pictures Looks like Quartz still needs some more snow too huh?

 

[fnDan]

Could still use some snow for sure but we were not dissappointed at all. You can still see a bit of daylight under the cabin but there are spots where you can get stuck good.
Saturday turned out pretty nice. It was -18 when we got to the cabin around 10:00 am and by 2:30 it was -11 up top.
On another note. The Rino GPS units worked awesome. I got separated from the group and by the time I got myself unstuck I had no idea where they were. I was halfway to the out of bounds signs on the meadows side when I got a call from a buddy at the cabin telling me where they were. I think that's really good considering the tree coverage through there. Also, with the avy rating and what happened in Sparwood, I used my Spot several times during the day to let my wife know I was OK. She was very happy to see those messages over the weekend. I bought a neoprene case from avalanchesafety.ca in Golden that worked great. I attached it to the strap on my backpack to reach it easily and it always has a clear view of the sky.

 

[polarice]

where did you pick up your rhino gps

 

[fnDan]

My Rino 530 was a xmas present from my wife last year. She bought it from GPS Central here in Calgary. They do mostly online transactions though. My brother got a good deal on a 520 on ebay last year. Another guy riding with us that day had a Rino 120 and had no problems either. Depends on how much you want to spend.

 

[summitking]

You guys see that Highway 1 is closed from Golden to Revy due to extreme avalanche conditions. What will cause these conditions to subside and how long will it take?

 

[fnDan]

Someone may correct me but I think warmer temperatures would help settle the snowpack and improve the stability. I'm not sure what needs to happen to fix the crusty layer from mid-december.

 

[Shibby!]

Or a bomb =)

Looks like fun. Thanks for the pics.

How does the Rhino positioning work? The manual doesn't tell you much, but it looks like it's position is transfered by radio which means you have a limited range. Which makes sense because Sat's are one way communication.

I just rock FRS radios with 45 km range (in real life, they are still pretty decent), and a GPS if I ever need it or go out of an area I am unfamiliar with.

 

[fnDan]

The positioning works using the GRMS radio. The range is good though. I was surprised I could talk to a buddy from the meadows to the cabin through the trees. The pictures were taken on Friday. I didn't bring the camera Saturday cause it was so cold. Wish I would have. There were some amazing shots first thing in the morning.

 

[Grubby]

what will get rid of the crusty layer from mid december?

 

[ferniesnow]

what will get rid of the crusty layer from mid december?

a real heavy wet dump that will produce natural avi's.... and then we can start over....if it isn't down it is only a matter of time and/or triggers....