It's one of the best kinds

 

Forecaster and Poet

This is what I mean...  a gem.  This time from the Northwest Weather and Avalanche Center..
Weather Synopsis for Friday and Saturday

The last week of March, the first full week of spring—

How much more rain, wind and snow can it all bring?

Winter effects are not over, despite what calendars say—

So don’t have a mantra of ride, hope and pray.

Dense wind slabs abound on slopes Northwest  thru East—

And cornices loom large like huge snowy beasts.

A stalled storm to the south is pouring rain and snow forth—

With slightly less precip in the central and north—

But the storm lifts north Saturday, & this should add to the load—

Making safe back country travel a very difficult road.

So before you go out, wherever you go—

Take some time to assess the state of the snow.

For slides don’t know whether you’re expert or not—

And don’t really give it a whole lot of thought. 

Translation:

Overall, a rather messy and rapidly changing weather situation is expected over the next several days in the region, with some widely fluctuating freezing levels in the south and central, intermittently strong winds and periods of moderate to heavy precipitation ...especially in the south and central.

Ski area humour

Main Lot     Boat parking now closed due to a switch from rain to snow.
Every day I look at all the different snow and avalanche reports from all over western Canada and the PNW, because I love scrutinizing the snow and avalanche conditions reports.  Sometimes I find gems such as the one above...  this is one of the honest reports from the Mt Hood area.
     
All we needed was just a couple degrees cooler and that was supposed to happen later this morning.  It appeared to be warmer in the south than the north... so we were hopeful the pass was half-way decent, because I was  too lazy this morning to drive a much further distance to a higher elevation.

What we found was snow that was a little intense and offered us adventure.  Serious blue snow and deep taffy powder that solidified after the skis touched.  If a skier can can ski these kind of snow conditions, the skier can pretty much ski anywhere.  Avalanche control was booming first thing in the morning and I suspect bringing everything down.  
So after a little investigation, we decided to go home to avoid breaking a leg or throwing an ACL. We proved to ourselves that we could ski it and weren't desperate enough to risk injury.  Now I get to watch the final season of Nip and Tuck.  And that's not a ski movie...  

We should have brought out water skis

Snow can be creepy at times

La Nina continues - avalanche control

Snoqualmie Pass on I-90  Updated: 8:01 AM, Mar 29, 2012
Pass Report
TEMPERATURE:
33ºF / 1ºC
ELEVATION:
3022 feet / 921 meters
RESTRICTIONS EASTBOUND:
Traffic stopped for avalanche control
CONDITIONS:
Compact snow, slush and ice on the roadway. Avalanche control work is complete. Westbound traffic has been released and is now moving. Eastbound traffic remains stopped at milepost 47, near Denny Creek, and milepost 56, near Gold Creek, while clean up continues.

WEATHER:  Snowing, hard at time with poor visibility  

Tree and River Meditation

"I like trees because they seem more resigned to the way they have to live than other things do" - Willa Cather

I go to nature to be soothed and healed, and to have my senses put in order - John Burroughs

God is the experience of looking at a tree and saying, "Ah" " - Joseph Campbell

No one can see their reflection in running water.  It is only in still water that we can see. - Taoist proverb