Quick report
- Cracking
- isolated
Both windslabs and PWS at same aspect/elevation vary in sensitivity. The main risk is trigger a smaller windslab higher up in the snowpack that can step down and trigger the PWL causing a destructive avalanche. we were breaking trail up to the southern snow fields during which cracking was observed under our skis trigger a small wind skin with cracks propagating less than a foot.
Weather
- Air Temp
- 2-5
- Cloud Cover
- broken
- Wind Loading
- light
- Recent Snowfall
- 0-2
Huntington Ravine was experiencing a north wind transporting snow on southern aspects
Snowpack
We dug 3 pits on a southern aspect at approximately 4300ft. We conducted compression tests and extended column tests, While each pit was only a meters apart, each pit experienced different results. One pit (video) saw failure at CT11 and ECTP22 on the PWL 60cm down int the snowpack. Another a pit saw CT5 failing on a windslab layer 25cm down in the snowpack and ECTP28 failing on the same PWL 60cm down in the snowpack. The third pit saw ECTN.