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bogbiker


Posts: 110
Joined: Feb 2009
Last Visited: 17:33
9th Apr 2019
Re: CairnGorm Mountain Snow 2017
Date Posted: 18.23hrs on Fri 28 Apr 17
I was up yesterday afternoon and the upper zigzags, 105 and travers were all full width. Where the machine has been the snow was compacted and skiable, where it hadnt been it was just mush. Had they been up the day before I reckon a full top to bottom run would have lasted until today/tomorrow.

As it stands a run to the middle is not possible but lift served skiing would definitely be possible in the upper bowl with a little moving of snow. Given the bars are off the tows I think the only uplift they would consider would be the funicular sadly.





Edited 2 times. Last edit at 18.26hrs Fri 28 Apr 17 by bogbiker.

raddays


Posts: 42
Joined: Sep 2012
Last Visited: 12:12
22nd Apr 2021
Re: CairnGorm Mountain Snow 2017
Date Posted: 08.30hrs on Mon 1 May 17
Looks CML they have rotated the top Ptarmigan webcam now to look away from the main bowl. Possibly to stop people asking why they are not opening for a few days due to increased snow cover.

WindyMiller


Posts: 654
Joined: Sep 2010
Last Visited: 17:31
1st Sep 2019
Re: CairnGorm Mountain Snow 2017
Date Posted: 17.47hrs on Mon 1 May 17
raddays Wrote:
Looks CML they have rotated the top Ptarmigan webcam now to look away from the main bowl. Possibly to stop people asking why they are not opening for a few days due to increased snow cover.


Don't worry here are todays pictures!

The mist/fog forecast for today did not appear and the wind seemed a lot less too so up I went.

It was a bit breezy in the car park,a very warm wind and with the combined strong sun the snow cover has retreated significantly. I went into the base station to get advice on the best way to skin up, it was suggested the M2 may have a reasonable cover and as the cas and 105 have now gone it was the windy ridge path. The path lived up to its name and it was tough going till it turned the corner at the tor and like a switch the wind turned off.

The skinable snow starts just above the old unload are of the Anoach poma. There were a couple of breaks but not large enough to remove the skis if you kept close to the fence.

The ptarmigan bowl has some good sized patches for skiing but not a continuous run.
The ptarmigan traverse is much thinner now and is broken in a couple of places. I had to change fence side to skin up.

The widest snow cover is the Marquis Well area, here there is good skiing to just below the weather station at the summit, I had to walk the last 50m or so to see over the back. But even up here the snow is soft and heavy. It is melting fast all over the mountain.

On the way back down I went over to the ptarmigan bowl and have a couple of runs on the patches.

A good warm sunny May bank holiday to be out on the mountain.

A few picture going up on face book later.
[www.facebook.com]

Graeme

Looking to the cas area.The snow level is retreating fast in the strong sunshine and warm wind.


The M2 is skinable from below the tor but there are a few small breaks.


The ptarmigan bowl has some large patches to play on though the snow is fairly soft, it was fun.


For the first time this season the ptarmigan traverse has broken in a couple of places. I used the other side of the fence to go up and crossed over to the tow area to come back down.


The skin to the top was worth it just for the view alone, and the ski back down was not bad either. Looking over to the northern corries.







Edited 1 times. Last edit at 17.56hrs Mon 1 May 17 by WindyMiller.

Attachments: Ptarmigan Bowl.JPG (265kB)   Northern Corries.JPG (275kB)   Ptarmigan traverse.JPG (254kB)   M2.JPG (250kB)   Cas side.JPG (269kB)  
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