Quick report
Today's objective was to assess the status of the wet loose and wind slab problems on Mount Shasta. The winds continue to crank out of the northeast, hammering the upper mountain, stripping any available soft snow down to the old snow. Surprisingly, none of the wind transported snow appears to be accumulating on the surface. Most of this snow is melting and sublimating into the atmosphere. On the bright side, no wind slab problem was encountered. These winds were very effective in keeping surfaces cold, despite the warm air temperature. Thus, signs of wet loose activity was limited. This may change in the coming days as the wind calms and temperatures continue to rise.
No instability was observed.Weather
- Air Temp
- 38
- Cloud Cover
- clear
- Wind Loading
- light
- Rain Elevation
- N/A
- Recent Snowfall
- 0
- Snow Avail For Transport
- small smounts
High pressure has brought clear skies over Mount Shasta. Not a single cloud could be seen. The northeast winds continued to blow strong-extreme above treeline, particularly above 9,000 feet. The winds have stripped any exposed surfaces of loose snow, leaving only sastrugi and old snow surfaces. Surfaces stayed relatively cold due to the wind, despite the sunny conditions. Where winds were calm, air temperature was far above freezing.
Snowpack
There is not much to note in terms of snowpack. The strong-extreme northeast winds have blown any available soft snow back into the atmosphere, only leaving old snow surfaces, crusts, and sastrugi. No accumulation of wind transported snow was observed, likely due to the warm air and very dry atmospheric conditions. Due to the cool winds, surfaces stayed cold and firm. Once the wind dies, surfaces will likely saturate quickly.