High pressure clears skies and keeps the snow around

The April snow storm that thoroughly covered Glacier Valley and Western Prince William Sound has left some perfect snow for all types of outdoor activities. The helicopters were non-stop Thursday, Friday and I expect today too, ferrying skiers to pristine mountain tops in the southern Chugach Range. Groomed trails are perfect at Alyeska for skiing and riding. 

Moose Meadows was soft and pillowy, very nice for off trail classic skiing. Come layered, it is 10° at the T in Girdwood this Saturday morning. With the sun out all day, we expect it to warm up, maybe to 30!

There was a huge solar flare on April 11 which made it to our atmosphere Friday. There are great forecasts for auroras tonight 4/13 and Sunday 4/14. Check the Geophysical Institute's web site for the summary. A link is on this page. Get a good workout today, have a big dinner, nap and then head outside after midnight for an evening show! 

Ah, the perfect winter day... in March!

Here I present the perfect winter day. Although, by some standards (re: the calendar our whole country clocks dates with) we are several days into spring. Ok, then this is the result of a country-wide phenomenon - the spring storm, Alaska version. 

Girdwood is the beneficiary of perfect geographical location for winter sports by way of abundant snow accumulation. Merely 20 miles west of Prince William Sound as the raven flies, Glacier Valley and Girdwood, Alaska is the repository of hundreds of inches of snow that falls from storms that swirl in the Sound with a westerly flow. Due to the locations of crevices and cracks between the vast spread of Chugach Mountains, the weather systems sneak through the mountains and rest on our valley and the Turnagain Arm. Snowboarders, resort skiers, back country skiers, and nordic skiers all are endeared to Glacier Valley for its diverse opportunities to ride the snow. 

Here once again, my favorite snow gauge in town, the picnic table in front of Girdwood Fire and Rescue. Today it is nearly invisible, in fact it took me a few passings by to be sure that was the table. And how gorgeous is the sky today? Of course it indicates the temperatures will be extremely cold tonight. I for one and happy to endure the cold for the beauty of retaining the white-white snow. The snow is so blindingly white and clean at this temperature and just after the fall. Once the temperature warms up, the snow dulls, grays, and becomes slick and icy. Not the prettiest landscape. 

Today, I enjoy the tremendous piles of snow resembling our nearby beloved glacier filled mountains, both sparklingly white. 

Fleeting spots of alpenglow pastels brighten the valley

I can never be tired of alpenglow. Alpenglow is especially rewarding during the winter months in my very snowy home of Girdwood. In the winter, Girdwood can receive around 600 inches of snow (mostly on the mountains, about 200 inches at the base). With so much snow covering everything, the environment tends to be black and white, or dark green and white, or maybe a little blue shows up in the sky with white and dark green. When the temperatures are above freezing, all that snow turns to slush or is mixed with road gravel to turn grey. In other words, when the ground is covered in snow, there is not much color from vegetation to decorate the landscape. Skis, snowboards, and puffy jackets are good accents however. In evenings or mornings when Glacier Valley is free of clouds or fog, alpenglow shines to bring a burst of color to the day. The warm pink, fading red, even salmon shades are invigorating to my eyes. Above is looking up glacier valley toward Eagle and Raven glaciers.

Alpenglow is derived from a German term, obvious to some of us. Alpen from alps, or mountains as Americans know them; and glühen which translates to glow. (Merriam-Webster Dictionary). Contrary to what our brains what to believe, the sun is not shining directly on the mountains to create the pink wash. The sun is near or below the horizon and the light scattering in the atmosphere reflects onto the snow covered mountains. (Wikipedia) Above is a view toward Raggedtop Mountain.

This is Max's Mountain at the Alyeska ski resort standing watch over the Girdwood Fire and Rescue building. Being surrounded by the Chugach Mountains in Girdwood gives me great opportunities to enjoy alpenglow, both in the evening and in the morning. The pastel colors are quite pleasing to my eye, pink and blue just play off each other so well. Nature always seems to mix colors in complementary patterns. 

Looking up Glacier Creek the setting sun highlighted the snow covering the gravel bars.

What was giving Girdwood the warm glow this evening? Here is the lovely sunset I saw while walking down the path toward "downtown" Girdwood. This evening there was a soft glow over the sun created by moisture in the air over Turnagain arm. 

The sun setting behind the Kenai Mountains across the Turnagain Arm from Glacier Valley.

No wind in Glacier Valley, just beautiful blue skies

-2° at 9am this morning, yet for the clear cold air, the frost is not growing. The frost is there, coating all surfaces again as it did in November. By 3pm the temperature had “jumped” to +1° wow. Above is another clear view of Penguin from the Tesoro in Girdwood. 

Yesterday I drove into Anchorage and there was a stiff wind along the Turnagain for most of the day. The wind was odd, though, in that it was not all throughout the air column. On the south side of the Turnagain, the snow was being blown off the tops of the mountains, the snow wafting off the tops in light drifts. Be warned those of you back country skiing, there will be wind drifts on your ridges in the Turnagain Pass area of the Kenai Mountains for sure. Check the CNFAIC site for some great recent photos and videos under the Observations tab. 

Back to the wind, while we could feel it on the car, the snow was not moving from the tops of the mountains on the Chugach Forest side (above the Seward Highway). On our way back to Gridwood at 8pm, the wind at the surface had really picked up and debris was blowing all over the road. The sky was clear as predicted and the bright moon lit up patches of water between the ice chunks in the Arm. It was very pretty. I was glad to find when we returned to Girdwood that Glacier Valley was spared the wind. This keeps our environment beautiful because the snow remains on the trees. The poor trees however, appear so tired to me. They look as though they are slouching their shoulders with their heads hanging low. Oh, so much cold with so little snow to protect us, its so cold, lets just lay down and go to sleep....

The wonderful benefit of no snow this winter is all the bright sun. For those of us who live here, we barely notice the shortened hours of sunlight due to its intensity for the four to five hours that it does shine. The blue and white I have made observations of before, are just so intense and cool to look at. 

Here is a view of the Headwall above Alyeska Ski Resort with the moon above all. The photos today were taken with my iphone. I have a lot of experience taking photos beginning when we still used film. I do hot, however, have a great deal of experience with this phone photography. I did adjust the colors slightly to make them more realistic. They look a little rough to me however, so I will keep practicing. The phone does not give all of the settings and adjustments that a digital SLR gives, thank goodness for Photoshop! 

Still sunny, day 14? Blizzard in the forecast

Better news, in NOAA’s forecast today we have a blizzard warning for Saturday! Today, though, we wake to the familiar gorgeous bright blue sky. There was a slight dusting of snow last night as I see when the car leaves the driveway, nothing significant, until....tomorrow!

The snow added some girth to the branches already growing with frost. This was a nice dreamy view with the haze in the air. The light on the trees in the background could not have been better.

The temperatures were a few degrees warmer, 7-9° with flurries around Bird Point. Which was the sight of a single car roll-over accident this morning. I am telling everyone, that road may be ‘clear’ but it is still slick. The driver was going to fast around the curve and slid off to the ditch. He had to be extricated but was conscious. Be careful! Yes, I am one of those pokey cars on the Seward, be thankful!

We drove into Anchorage today, here are some nice images of frost with the Chugach Mountains around Eagle Glacier (in the background), and the Turnagain Arm.

Light flurries around Bird on the way home as well, but stars in the skies. 

What an absolutely gorgeous morning

A sweet pink dawn rivaling those clear sunsets of last week, and day two of frost. Above is a view over the Alyeska Resort toward Raven and Eagle glaciers. If you are wondering what it all looks like from the air, today would be a great day for a flightseeing trip. Visit Alpine Air Alaska’s website. They are located right here in Girdwood. Alpine also has a facebook page where you can see the latest awesome photos of recent flights. The most experienced helicopter pilots around will take you on a smooth trip to see the fresh snow cover, icy creeks and the big blue sky. 

Today would be an exceptional day as there is virtually no wind. A perfect day for flightseeing or back country skiing, no wind crowns! And since there has been no wind, the snow is holding fast to the trees making for that beautiful winter wonderland experience. Should be a great drive out for pass holders tomorrow and opening day at the resort on Thursday!

Here is a view of Penguin at 9:30 with Raggedtop visible through the trees to the right. Its day two of frost and the forecast if for several more days, at least through Saturday of the same. 

Last night on our drive back from Anchorage, my husband and I stopped to look at the stars. The moon is just about half so it was not too bright. The milky way was visible overhead. The pleiades (containing the little dipper) were plainly visible and the large star to the left is Jupiter. Hyades are also visible. While the aurora forecast is low, go out and look at the stars! For those of us who miss Jack Horkheimer’s Star Gazer forecast, here is good news. Sky & Telescope Magazine’s Associate Editor Tony Flanders has filled the space void left by Jack’s passing. Mr. Flanders can be seen on PBS weekly with the SkyWeek observations. You can see this week’s SkyWeek on their website here. Yea!

Max’s is clear as a bell here, sun glowing from behind. I don’t know about you, but I feel like winter is going to pass quick this year. At 9:30 this morning it was 9° with a surprising 91% relative humidity, 70% at the top of the mountain.

While you are getting your gear prepped, keep this in mind if you find your skis are worn out or did not serve you well last year with all the powder days. Will Spears, one of the ski tuners at Alyeska Resort, has started his own business, Chugach Snow Tools. He is building custom skis for the Chugach mountain conditions. They are made with all U.S. materials and local wood. Stephen Shortridge has started Chugach Flyer Snowboards, also made with all U.S. products. You can see an article about them in the Turnagain Times here.