Quick report
- Cracking
- specific
Avalanches were breaking within the new and wind-drifted snow on many steep slopes, and a group of riders triggered an avalanche remotely from the runout zone that broke far above them and piled debris 6-8 feet deep. Strong winds were rapidly drifting snow throughout the day even after snowfall ended mid-afternoon. We saw slides on east through north aspects, but I wouldn't put much weight on those being the "unstable aspects." Weak, faceted snow buried 1-2 feet deep was easy to locate everywhere we dug.
While we did get some propagating ECTs, many did not (ECTN teens, PST 20/100 SF). This is likely to evolve with additional loading, but for now, avalanches are the primary indicator of instability.
Weather
- Air Temp
- 25
- Cloud Cover
- overcast
- Wind Loading
- intense
- Recent Snowfall
- 40
- Snow Avail For Transport
- large amounts
Heavy snowfall and strong winds through mid-afternoon when skies cleared
Avalanche
- Size
- D2 R2
- Type
- SS
- Count
- 6
- Aspect
- E
- Trigger
- N
- Elevation
- 9100 ft
Natural avalanche near the ridgeline above Yale Creek. The slope receives some wind-loading that likely pushed it over the edge. Unknown whether it was a storm slab or persistent slab.