Death By A Thousand Cuts

Like the ancient Chinese torture, the areas not covered by manmade snow are killing our boards and skis.

The weakest link continues to be Eagle Way. Even after my first run this morning the cat track from the top of Crackenback was in a very poor state. By mid morning I decided that I wasn’t going back to the top. Apart from the bedrock starting to come through on Eagle Way, the narrow entrance into the tree line, just above Snowgums top station, looks like a gravel pit. Ski Patrol were picking up some of the larger rocks but it was like shifting grains of sand on a beach.

It has become painfully obvious this week that snow making just has to be installed by next year along all of Eagle Way. The “snow inversion” continues with an increase in winds on the upper slopes blowing away the manmade while in the valley the snow keeps accumulating.

Below Snowgums the snow was firm on a good cover and it just kept getting better the lower you went. We had full on concrete conditions above Bunny Walk on Tuesday but a change in the wind helped. Sundowner was good this morning and High Noon generally good although there were a few very hard packed patches. The rocks exposed earlier in the week have been covered.

Crackenback Traverse has held on – just. It is not good but hasn’t really got any worse over the week. I guess the frozen slab is pretty well indestructible at present.

Snow making begun on Lovers Leap Bypass and looks close to opening – may be on the weekend. I suspect this may double as an extended racecourse if natural falls do not improve World Cup, especially above Tower 10.

Snow making begins on Lovers Leap Bypass

An almost skiable Lover Leap Bypass this morning

Below Bunny Walk this morning

Milk Run before the crowds

Bottom of Milk Run has the best snow

Eagle Way with bedrock coming through

Back of Gunbarrel chair

Friday Flat always popular

High Noon - skiers right has a good man made cover

Crackenback Traverse – the T’s are going back on Antons

The weather has been glorious but now we are all hoping for a good spell of foul weather to increase the snow pack. The forecast is for snow over the weekend. Let’s hope we get something decent.

With only one day to go in June, the cooling trend has continued for a third consecutive month. The minimum for June 2006 was 1.4C colder than the minimum in June 2005 and the maximum has been 5.6C colder than the maximum for June 2005. The disappointing statistic is that we have only had 34mm of precip as opposed to 148.2mm last June. (June30 update: month total for precip is now 34.2mm, while temps remain unchanged)