Quick report
- Red Flags
- Wind Loading, Poor Snowpack Structure
- Red Flags Comment
- <p>The steady winds the last few days have moved lots of snow around stripping some slopes down to rock and dirt. Today's wind drifts were a bit deeper and more connected easily cracking ahead of skis and sleds. Some natural cornice fall observed, but did not trigger any avalanches.</p>
One of the deeper places I have dug with around 50" of snow and the stability tests are getting harder to get any clean crack or propagation across an isolated column of snow.
Steady winds the last few days have worked over the open terrain and stripped some slopes to bare ground.
The fresh wind drifts are breaking a couple feet deep and getting a little more connected in the higher terrain.
Snowpack
- Instability Comment
- <p>Steady west and southwest winds the last few days have transported lots of snow onto north and east facing slopes. Some of the west facing terrain has been stripped to bare ground. Some of the wind slabs are breaking up two feet deep.</p> <p>Where the snow pack is deeper, stability tests are getting harder to get any clean cracks or propagation across a column of snow. The weak sugary snow in the mid pack is still there, but looks like it has gained some strength from compression and more depth.</p>
The riding and turning conditions are quite nice and many riders were out today enjoying great powder snow. Areas not protected from the wind are really getting worked over with big deep drifts.