Quick report
The forever ridge has broken!! It was so nice to see some fresh snow in the trees again!! And to be rained on again!! (maybe a little bit of sarcasm with that last one, but not too much) Wet snow issues were the primary concern at middle elevations today. The previous 5 days of warmth did a lot to heat and melt the snowpack, and a few inches of wet snow+ rain produced a reactive, gouging wet loose problem. I avoided larger steep slopes in this band but was able to trigger a handful of wet loose slides on test slopes that quickly gouged and picked up speed, limited only by the size of the slope. Debris was very wet and heavy. At upper elevations, loose snow avalanches were the primary concern. I was able to trigger a handful of these slides with ski cuts; they were quickly picking up steam and at least two became D1.5s. The new snow on top of the old, weak facets really exacerbated this problem. I did not encounter any slab-related problems, but I expect this will change with ongoing precipitation. I found a few wind drifts along an upper elevation ridgeline that were 8-10 inches thick and well-bonded. Outside of the windzone I did not encounter any reactive slabs. Many handpits revealed an ugly, very weak, faceted upper snowpack (the 2/8 PWL). Lots of rollers and pinwheels below the rain line, and a few natural D1s. No significant cracking or collapsing.
Weather
- Cloud Cover
- obscured
- Rain Elevation
- 7500
- Recent Snowfall
- 10-15
Drizzling rain when I left the highway in the afternoon. It had snowed down here initially, but this was taking a serious wetting. Rain reached up to around 7500', above was all snow. Snow was quite dense immediately above the rain line (estimated 12-14%), becoming less dense as I climbed (still 9-10% up high).
Snowpack
4-6" of dense new snow sitting on the month-in-the-making 2/8 weak layer. Skiing was a touch top-heavy/trapdoor feeling where new snow sat on stacks of facets, and a little sticky down low where new snow had been rained on.
Avalanche
I triggered a handful of wet loose avalanches at middle elevations and a handful of dry loose avalanches at upper elevations. These were occurring on slopes in the mid to upper 30s — nothing super steep. Visibility was poor and I could not see much of the terrain around me, but I did see a few natural D1 wet loose avalanches at middle elevation.