East Slopes Central
Pericolo valanghe
In sintesi
A nice day is in store with sunshine above the inversion layer. 2-4" of new snow should improve riding conditions some, but expect various degrees of breakable crust beneath, and coverage is still shallow. Warming temperatures may lead to moist and sticky snow on some slopes.
Avalanche Discussion
The area picked up anywhere from 2-4" of moist new snow on Tuesday. This snow, although not a lot, is a welcome change. The new snow was bonding well to old surfaces at Mission Ridge on Tuesday, and minimal wind drifting was observed. The new snow may 'dry out' a little and lead to improved riding on Wednesday...at least in the morning. Sunny skies and warm temperatures may once again lead to moist sticky snow surfaces on slopes that face SE-SW. Look for small rollerballs and the slight potential for a small wet loose sluff on steep slopes facing the sun. If you see these then adjust your travel plans accordingly.
The last significant snowfall was December 9-10th, with 8-20 inches of snow that unfortunately ended in light rain or freezing rain up to about 6,500ft. Since then, inversions have dominated the east slopes, with cold valley temperatures underneath the cloud deck, and warm temperatures (up to 40 F) with mostly sunny skies at upper elevations.
We have limited information about the snowpack at upper elevations but here is a quick run-down: Beneath the few inches of new snow a crust from December 10th extends up to 7,000ft, or 6500ft further north in the zone. In the Icicle Drainage, observations from the weekend found the near surface crust dissipated above ~6,700ft. On Monday I found about 1" of weak faceted snow over a translucent freezing rain (trap) crust below 4500ft in the Icicle. Above 4500ft, the surface was a melt-freeze crust from the warmer temperatures, and travel was a bit better on skis. Overall, coverage is thin and many areas are still quite difficult to access. You may find exposed boulderfields and rocks on many slopes.
You can contribute to the forecast! Let us know what you found by submitting an observation HERE.