[peltoms]

The North Cascade Glacier Climate Project for the 28th consecutive summer spent the first three weeks of August examining North Cascade glaciers. As all hikers know, the snowpack is extraordinary both below and on the glaciers. We found the snowpack was consistently the second most of the last 28 years falling behind 1999. Video for the year is at the bottom. First Comparing 1999-2011 from a hiking standpoint on the same dates then the actual trip report Blanca Lake 1999: Had to wear crampons to descend snow to lake 2011: Just a couple small patches of snow descending to lake Lake Ann-Lower Curtis Glacier: 1999: No semblance of trail through woods in the traverse section after the meadow trek. 2011: Trail 90% exposed Easton Glacier: 1999: Schrieber Meadow 90% snow cover follow snowmobile trail not hiking trail. 2011: 2% snowcover in meadow, able to follow trail all the way to Scott Paul turnoff Daniels Glacier: 1999: Had to wear crampons across snowslope below Cathedral Rock enroute to Peggys Pond. 2011: Two steps on snowpatch below Cathedral Rock The field season began at Columbia Glacier, unlike usual we camped on the south side of Blanca Lake on a snowfree patch in the woods above the lake. We then crossed the lake on the ice well it was still hard frozen in the morning. We probed every step of the way. In the afternoon slush we forded the outlet stream. The glacier was 100% snowcovered average snowdepth was just over 5 meters.

Lower Curtis Glacier; The hike up from Heather Meadows to Austin Pass took 20 minutes, but was offset by the rapid glissade down to the meadow below. The free roam through the snowcovered meadow was a joy. A climax avalanche descended from the north side of the valley at the edge of his meadow. From previous experience I knew it was crucial to follow the trail through the next woods segment, and in fact we were able to do so. The straight snow ascent to Lake Ann was also shorter. We ended up camped on snow above the lake. The glacier had like Columbia Glacier an average snowpack of just over 5 m, in both cases 3.8 meters more than last summer. The terminus was easier to explore with snowpack below it, a retreat of 8 meters had occurred since the previous August, all of it late last summer.

We then proceeded out on Ptarmigan Ridge which was devoid of tracks, people and mountain goats for a change. Snow pack on Sholes Glaciers was 3.6 meters more than in 2010, terminus buried no blue ice exposed.

The next field area was Easton Glacier and Squak Glacier. We measured the snowpack on both. We found 3.5 meters of snowpack at 6000 feet, where normally it is blue ice and at 6600 feet the average snow depth was 4.75 meters. We also collected ice worms for an anit-freeze protein project at Queens University, Kingston Ontario. These proteins help keep organisms from freezing solid, by coalescing around ice crystals and preventing their expansion. For us they could be a critical resource in surgical procedures where keeping organs cold is important. We could have used some kind of protein to keep us warm on the four chilly but dry days on the Easton Glacier. In the Hulksmash competition Coors Light emerged as the seven time champion beer of choice for snowmobilers, with seven cans collected, bud light was second at five.

We visited Lyman Glacier ascending the former Spider Glacier valley, which was this summer of course still snow filled. Lyman Glacier has lost some of its splendor in the last three years. It had a high ice cliff in 2008 and 2009 that has now diminshed. The glacier has gone from an average surface slope of 12 degrees in 1986 to 18 degrees in 2008 to 21 degrees in 2011, as it continues a rapid ice loss.

On Mount Daniels snowpack was not as extraordinary as at other locations. It was also the first place that bugs came out, and they dis so in force. Snowpack on Ice Worm Glacier averaged 4.6 meters, and on Lynch and Daniels Glacier 4.3 and 4.6 meters respectively. Pea Soup Lake at the base of Lynch was still ice covered. We ascended the Lynch over the bergshrund pictured in last image below with a snow depth from the winter of 6.7 meters.

Overall of course North Cascade glaciers are going to have a positive mass balance that is substantial. The terminus retreat of most glaciers will be limited by extensive snowcovering of termini. One good year is nice, but is not going to alter the big picture of volume loss.

[Scrooge]

No surprises on this year's glacial snow cover, but the comparison of the snow cover on the access routes between 1999 and 2011 was intriguing. I've discovered something similar at Big Four: lots of avalanche activity throughout the winter, but virtually no accumulation of fresh snow at the 2000' level of the run-out plain. The process that is eating our glaciers continues, in spite of appearances. Good report and good video, Mauri. Was the video Jill's work, again? The quality of the production (or something about it ) should result in an increase in glaciology enrollment.

[aywolfpac]

[Hulksmash]

[Backpacker Joe]

Matt is.

[peltoms]

Hulksmash how did you like the competition named for you with empty beer can cleanup? Jill the visual and sound, I put in the captions

[newtrout]

Wow, that really puts the winter of 1999 in perspective. I look forward to your posts every year. Thanks for posting. Why do you say that the snowpack on Daniels was not as extraordinary? The measurements seem equal to those from Baker and others. Would you normally expect the Daniels' glaciers to have more snowcover than others? On a side note, during our last cleanup party on Baker I found that climbers prefer to poo in blue bags over black bags by a nearly 3 to 1 ratio....

[peltoms]

The Mount Daniels snowpack was close to 2.5 meters above average instead of 3.5 meters above average was the key. This was also evident in the lack of snowpack into the heather areas, which were still mostly covered in the Mount Baker area.

[Trail Angel]

Mauri~ you have to know I'm going to ask this....goat counts? And was that one goat at the Lower Curtis? Glad you had a safe trip.

[peltoms]

The mountain goats at Ptarmigan Ridge were clearly for the first time not in the their normal range. We have seen at least 50 goats over the last five years. This year just twenty, only one of the three herds were in the region.

[ale_capone]

HA!!! You DID cross Blanca lake! Without water wings no less. Thanks... been waiting to read your glacial report. Interesting approach comparisons.