Oregon boasts a record and bounty of snowpack

[jpak]

http://www.oregonlive.com/news/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/1207106713137090.xml&coll=7

The cumulative snowfall at Mt. Hood Meadows ski area from Nov. 1 through Monday -- 650 inches -- is the most ever recorded there.

That's a bit over 54 feet of snow, or the width of the roadway on Michigan's Mackinac Bridge, the third-longest suspension bridge in the world; the circumference of the Abraham Lincoln giant sequoia in the Yosemite Valley; and the crest level of the Mississippi River at Cairo, Ill., on March 25.

It was snowy at the ski resort on Mount Hood during the same period in 1982-83, when the previous record of 623 inches fell. But this past winter's snowfall -- and last week's in particular -- had one advantage over the "Cascade cement" that typically falls in March, said Dave Tragethon, the ski resort's marketing director.

"Everybody I talked to agrees that there has never been better powder than we had last week," he said. "The snowpack is very airy."

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[classof56]

1. As an Oregonian who appreciates the benefits of a good snowpack

I am grateful to hear this news and thank you for posting. Interesting comparisons you listed. I'm not a skier but had been concerned at the potential for drought. Now let's hope it doesn't melt really fast and cause flooding...like the one in 1996...and some earlier ones we've had in these parts (1964 comes to mind).

Blessings!