Wind effects on mountain top snow

All day Thursday there were ferocious winds through Glacier Valley, Portage Valley , and the Turnagain Arm. Gusts were as high as 70 miles per hour, the bulk of the wind blowing continuously. When the wind blows for extended periods of time with little precipitation falling, the snow is being blown around. Not only is the snow blowing around, its moving very fast. These high winds, and wind in general, happen frequently in the Chugach and Kenai mountains. After the storm dies down, if there is not further precipitation, we can see crusts that have formed on the mountain tops. 

Above is a photo of Mt. Alpenglow and nearby mountains. There is a light spot visible on the ridge of the mountain coming toward us in the photo. Below is a photo that points out the area I want you to see. This is a snow crust. Although it does not look like it in this representation, when I saw it originally, the snow crust was very bright due to the sunshine. The clouds were moving enough to change the effect of sunlight as I watched. Some clouds were moving east, some west. There is still a big disturbance over the Gulf of Alaska today. 

Basically, the snow has polished itself. I found this to be the case in Moose Meadows today as well. A late afternoon attempt at cross country skiing left me thinking I almost needed ice skates. The surface of the loop was extremely glassy making a good deal of scratchy noise against the skis. Yikes! I wanted toothed grippers on my poles too! The afternoon was lovely never-the-less due to some blue sky in the west past the Glacier Creek valley. I have added a new resource site in the list below. The National Snow and Ice Data Center, very informative for us in snowy climates. 

Snow

I'm asking nicely, with reasons, to pick up your dog poo

Partly cloudy skies greeted Girdwood this morning. By late morning, we had this nice view toward Raggedtop Mountain beneath mostly blue skies. As this photo may imply, it is a little warm outside for February, 40° to be exact. It seems a fourth spring is upon Glacier Valley for this 2012 - 2013 winter season. Walking outside is quite pleasant, as I imagine skiing is as well due to a low wind chill factor gliding down the mountain. 

I ventured out to Moose Meadows for a ski around the loop. At this time, around 5 pm, fog started to rumble into the valley. Although the air temperature was warm today, the surface of the nordic track was nice and crisp. The snow seemed to glaze over rather than turn mushy and sticky. Aside from all the dog poo mushed into the tracks, the skiing was fast and fun. Please dog owners, if you walk your pet in Moose Meadows, please pick up after the dog. There are mitts provided at the entrance to the meadows and all along the path in Girdwood. 

Why is it preferable for dog owners to pick up and dispose of their pet’s waste instead of letting it decompose in the park? Besides it being unpleasant to ski or walk around and getting stuck in the groomer, it is un-neighborly. Because of the pathogens it will release in the environment when the snow melts. And if you do not like your neighbors asking you to properly dispose of dog waste, hear it from the Environmental Protection Agency. The EPA long ago declared pet waste a non-point source pollution problem. Read more on this EPA publication, a .pdf file. 

Abundance in parks is what makes dog waste especially noxious to the environment. When lots of people with dogs walk their pets in the same location over and over, the high concentration of dog poo in one area creates a water contamination problem. Residents of Girdwood should be sensitive to this issue as many homes here have wells as their source of water. Many of these wells are very shallow, 20 to 40 feet deep. This means the wells are recharged with surface water run-off frequently. When I first moved to Girdwood, I lived in a cabin with water supplied by its own well. This well did not even have a filter on it. I am sure there are many residences in Glacier Valley supplied by well water that is unfiltered. As a result, wouldn’t you like to know the water flowing into your well was clean and free of bacteria dissolved out of dog poo?! 

Moose, bears, porcupines and squirrels poo in the forest, why can’t my dog? Because wild animals are spread over a larger range than our domestic pets. Just look at the ski loop in Moose Meadows or the walking path along the Alyeska Highway in Girdwood. How many moose droppings do you see? How many dog poos do you see? A heck of a lot more dog poo. Leaving your dog’s poo in walking areas is just irresponsible, rude, and trashy. Take pride in your neighborhood, keep it clean, please! 

Super fluff snow, this is the winter we want!

The snow did pile up as predicted! It is a gorgeous powder day as it was yesterday. Girdwood has received over 12 inches of snow in the last 24 hours at the base. The snow is dry and fluffy, fun to blow around and flop down into. 

Yesterday evening was not as fun for one spot in particular. I went to Moose Meadows to ski the loop, yet found it more of a snow shoe ski walking trek. I definitely need to wax my skis! And the wet snow all happened in the 15 minutes it took me to walk to the park. Once I stepped down into the Meadows, I was greeted with a stiff westerly wind coming through the pass. It was quite warm, well relatively warm. The temperature had been around 27° most of the day, but by 5 pm it was about 34° with the wind. As a result, the top of the snow became more wet than silky and my skis did not want to slide over the surface. 

This morning and through most of the day it has been around 28°. However, my husband and I have a new temperature gauge. We know when the snow slides off the metal roof on the house behind us the temperature has risen above freezing. At about 3pm I noticed the neighbor’s roof was clear of snow. Sure enough, the snow falling outside was at a faster rate indicating a more liquid content than frozen content. The temperature was at 32° at that time. 

The forecast for Girdwood is temperatures in the high 20’s tonight and then creeping up to mid 30's Thursday. That means there may be rain along the coast. There are high percentage chances of snow and rain for the next two days. Great ski and riding condition, come enjoy more space to yourself during the week on the slopes! Even better, if you are already in Glacier Valley, tonight is Jack Sprat’s burger night. Freshly ground beef with a special theme creation! 

Tropical warmth heading our way

As we woke this morning, we could hear the sound of warm air. What does that sound like? Blobs of snow falling off the trees onto the house roof. The warm air approaches, it is 33° this morning. The air is calm at least the heat is not surging yet, unlike the predictions of rising flood waters as snow melts this weekend. Check the NOAA forecast for south central, the flood warning is in red. 

There is a very grey sky over Glacier Valley today, and these clouds, they are not the kind you want to see in a ski town, in January. Those are tropically influenced clouds, our second round of pine apple express for the season. These photos are from Moose Meadows in Girdwood. In addition to the clouds rolling in, the air is quite humid. The snow is warm and sticky, thus requiring wax even on wax-less nordic skis. A nice evening none-the-less since the temperature was pleasant for being outside. 

Sloppy roads in Girdwood, some indoor plants benefit from steam in the bath

So much for the blue sky dots yesterday, today was grey with drizzle all day. The temperature remains at 34° in Girdwood. The roads are nothing but slush, dirty, messy slushies. The walking path is mush, and forget Moose Meadows. The weather is warming up the surface making it fairly un-skiable. Check the Girdwood Nordic Ski Club site for current grooming information. They have groomed the new 5K trail, however, the ground is too soft to groom in Moose Meadows.

My inquisitions of locals that have lived here a long time tell me there has been one or two times when opening of chair 6 at Alyeska Resort happened as late as January or February (it opened today for the first time this season). Ski Patrol has posted a very informative notice on the Chugach National Forest Avalanche Information site regarding the snow conditions at the Resort. This notice will be helpful to those who are avid top-of-the-mountain skiers to understand why North Face and so many outer areas are not open. It delivers some great information regarding avalanche occurrences and includes a good video.

For the plant lovers out there, you may be tempted to start your seeds now or be eyeing that newly exposed ground in your yard. Don't fall for the warm temperatures yet. February will be a better time to start seed. And we all know it will freeze again either this month or next. If you have indoor bromeliads or orchids a good way to keep them happy this time of year, when it is dry inside, is to hang them or place them in your bathroom. This way they can take advantage of the humidity from your shower or baths.  These types of plants take in moisture through their exposed parts, orchids especially. Just remember to keep them near a window or return them to a brightly lit area after their steam.

A Solstice of sun and celebration

Today was a busy and cold day in Girdwood. I did not register any temperature all day above 0. Morning started at -4°. The Grind Coffee Roaster and Shop held an open house with warm brews and international flair. There were transplants from all over the world meeting up in there.

The big highlight was the opening of the Girdwood Nordic Ski trail by the Girdwood Nordic Ski Club. It was -6° at 2pm. But a hearty warm fire was kept going along with hot tea and cocoa with moose cookies made by the Bake Shop. Deb Essex mastered ceremonies and founding members cut the ribbon to officially open the lovely trails that wind through the gorgeous northern most point of the western coastal rain forest. It was a stunning day for the opening. This was truly a special and momentous community event.

The Girdwood Nordic Ski Club now has two snow machines with which to groom the trails. Moose Meadows was perfectly groomed for a ski home. Here is a lovely entrance to the Meadows off the Girdwood walking trail.

The evening was full of Solstice celebrations where everyone shared in friendship and appreciation of the earth. Then, on going home, we braved the -9° biting air. Let's hope the snow forecasts are accurate!

Small frost crystals sparkle

Today I will present some detailed photos of the frost build up. But first, here is our morning view across the valley. A light layer of clouds taunting us again with the chance of snow. The forecast gives us a 20 percent chance. However, I still see no sign that the lows are winning over the highs. Status quo. 

Max’s southside is surely happy this time of year. Without snow clouds, we hardly notice the shortening daylight. With only 18 days left to shorten, we will be back to lengthening days–a short yet bitter winter. 

I am fascinated by the frost crystals this month. They are much smaller that the large plates we had in October. I can only hypothesize that is due to the much colder temperatures making it harder for the water vapor to settle out onto existing crystals. In October the temperatures were in the 20’s and high teens. This month they have barely cracked 10°, today we will be lucky if it is over 7°.

This past weekend, as many locals and parents of high schoolers may know, Moose Meadows in Girdwood hosted the nordic and skate ski races. This was due to the fact that there was poor snow conditions at Kinkaid Park in Anchorage. Fortunately Girdwood has had a little more snow and has an avid Nordic Ski Club to maintain an extensive network of trails. The Girdwood Nordic club groomed Moose Meadows for the race so I thought I’d give it a try today. I did this with the knowledge in mind that the racers probably packed the trail and it would be icy. I wanted to give it a chance because at the end of last season, some of the best skiing was on ungroomed snow with a crispy surface. That was not to be the case this week. The conditions were terrible for regular nordic. I am not a skate skier so I cut across the center in a track someone else made and rounded out to head home.  There were other folks out there, even children indicating it is doable by better skilled people than myself. The most annoying, however, was all the dogs. Dogs are allowed in Moose Meadows, but what I never see is any owner picking up the poo. In addition to icy skiing conditions, there are trail hazards to avoid. Dog owners and their dogs, you get the finger! Pick it up! Plus, when spring comes and that concentration of poo seeps into the meadows, it spreads icky bacteria. And no, it is not natural to our environment! 

On to more pleasantries. Here is a selection of frost photos. Several of them have been enhanced, color shifted, and adjusted to highlight the crystal structures. No artificial crystals have been built in the making of these pictures. One thing I have noticed in this frost episode is the formation of little "pillows" of frost. These look like something has bubbled up from underneath. The pillows are small, about 2-4 inches across.

Here are some selections of branches. Although it looks like the branches are growing in thickness all the way around, indeed most have frost "hanging" as if the frost forms by gravity as well. 

Here are some awesome views of the crystal forms, frost close-up. Again, these are not as large as the 4-6 inch plates (20 cm) we saw in October. These are about 1-2 inches (2-5 cm)

Look at the special formations. Any mathematician, fibonaccians, or fractal experts I am sure know all about these.