Snowpack
- Instability Comment
- <p>We did trigger a small shallow soft slab avalanche about 50' wide that ran 100 vertical feet. The crown was 8". It was just the new snow, but it was a 50' wide crown, not a point release or a sluff. The skier stopped and the snow just ran right over his skis and on down the slope, there wasn't enough mass in the moving snow to cause a problem. It was an east facing slope with many small trees/bushes and the crown was in a locally steep spot that may have been near 35 degrees for a few turns.</p>
The snow surface was dense and in any place with wind (which was just about everywhere, even in the trees) the upper layer of the snow was more dense than the snow beneath that layer....the snow was inverted and somewhat punchy. While skinning along, there were often cracks in the top surface about 4" deep, but we didn't experience any settlement or anything at all from the pre-existing snow pack. The skiing conditions were fun and challenging, but sub-optimal given the inverted nature of the snow in most areas. Best skiing was in wind sheltered areas or where the new snow was on a very firm surface. Much of the new snow had the consistency of sand, as there was little or no cohesion in all that graupel.