Wind Slabs
- Alta montaña
- Límite del bosque
- Bajo el límite del bosque
- Probabilidad
- Possible
- Tamaño
- 2
Ted was out on the North Slope and mentions, "As they say at the drive up window; I will have the 'Super Size'. The cornices have grown quite large and are peeling off a few layers and depositing some decent debris piles on this heavily wind loaded ridgeline in Cataract Basin. Some of these triggered shallow slabs, but nothing too deep into old snow from my vantage point."
Northerly winds moved lightly with moderate gusts last night and will leave behind stubborn slabs of wind-drifted snow that exist many, if not all upper elevation slope. Today's drifts will be specific to high ridgelines and near terrain features like under cornices, gully walls, cliff-bands, subridges and slope convexities (rollovers). Watch for and avoid stiffer snow that appears smooth, chalky, and rounded, and pay attention when stomping around on it as it may sound hollow, like a drum. Stiffer slabs may allow you to get out on slope and make a few turns or trench a track before triggering it, while fresher, softer drifts will be more sensitive to our additional weight and easier to initiate.
A large cornice failed naturally during yesterday's warm up and stacked up a sizable amount of debris, certainly enough to put a working on a skier or rider.