  We present ASCA observations of the dwarf nova Z Camelopardalis during
outburst and during a transition from quiescence to another outburst.
  At the beginning of the transition the X-ray count rate was an order of
magnitude higher and the spectrum much harder than during the outburst. As the
transition progressed, the spectrum remained hard as the X-ray flux decreased
by a factor of 3, with no spectral softening. Spectral modelling reveals an
optically-thin, high-temperature component (kT$\approx$10 keV) which dominates
the transition observation and is also observed during outburst. This is
expected from material accreting onto the white dwarf surface. The outburst
spectra require additional emission at lower temperatures, either through an
additional discrete temperature component, or a combination of a cooling flow
model and an ionised absorber.
  Fits to both observations show large amounts of absorption
($N_H=8-9\times10^{21}$cm$^{-2}$), two orders of magnitude greater than the
measured interstellar value, and consistent with UV measurements of the
outburst. This suggests that a disk wind is present even in the earliest stages
of outburst, possibly before the outburst heating wave has reached the boundary
layer.
