Summit Lake
Pericolo valanghe
In sintesi
With a lack of active weather over the past several days, Summit Lake is in a 'normal caution' regime. Avalanche conditions are generally safe, though there are a few issues to watch for. Stubborn, shallow wind slabs in the upper elevations and low-volume dry loose avalanches may be found today. LOW danger does not mean no danger, and it'll be important to continue maintaining safe travel habits by skiing/riding one at a time in avalanche terrain and minimizing exposure to terrain traps.
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SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Join CNFAC for the annual Turnagain Pass Avalanche Awareness Day this Saturday, March 14, from 12–4 PM at the motorized lot. In addition to free burgers and hot dogs, you can run rescue drills, chat with forecasters, and demo sleds with AMDS, Anchorage Yamaha/ Polaris. Meet the forecasters and partners from the Alaska Avalanche School, Anchorage Nordic Ski Patrol, and Alaska Search and Rescue Dogs. Come refresh your skills, talk snowpack, and eat a hot dog or three!
Avalanche Discussion
Wind slabs: Fortunately, the north wind didn't do the damage that can sometimes be expected in the Summit Lake zone during an outflow event. Recent observations from Tuesday reported 4 to 5 inches of soft snow sitting atop a variety of old wind textures at 2,500'. With a lack of wind over the past 2 days, any wind slabs that formed earlier in the week are expected to be in the 1' deep range and on the stubborn side today. Though triggering a wind slab is unlikely, this still warrants caution, particularly in steeper terrain near ridgelines and slope convexities.
Dry Loose: For skiers, dry, loose (sluffs) avalanches are also likely as cold, clear temps and a lack of wind continue to facet out the surface. These shouldn't be large enough to bury a person, but may be fast-running and need to be 'managed' to avoid getting knocked off your feet in steep terrain today.
Persistent slab: It's been well over a month since we've seen any activity on the deeper layer of facets buried 2-4' deep. We know the snowpack structure is poor, but at this point, this layer is dormant, and it's very unlikely we'd see an avalanche fail on the deeper facets today.