Quick report
Shallow but reactive wind slabs were actively forming above 6,000ft. These were forming over faceted grains and surface hoar. Triggered a 20ft wide pocket on a NE aspect at 6,300ft that didn't move, it was 2-6" deep. On a second lap with continued loading I checked an adjacent slope and triggered a 30ft wide pocket that was 6" deep, this time it slid downhill 30ft. A number of wet loose slides were observed from the prevous day in the D1.5-2 range, and we observed one D1 that likely occurred today.
Weather
- Wind Loading
- intense
- Snow Avail For Transport
- moderate amounts
Blue skies with cool temps this morning. Blowing snow visible off the tippy top of Cannon Peak. By the time we got up to Eightmile Lake Axis had a nearly continuous plume off its NE face with increasing winds. Moderate to intense loading off the top of the peaks, light loading between 6,000 and 7,0000ft becoming moderate by 2pm or so. Scattered clouds showed up at 2pm and whizzed by.
Snowpack
A thin near surface crust was found up to about 5,500ft on northerly aspects, and thicker on E. Between 5,000 and 5,500 it was more brittle. This crust had a couple inches of low density faceting grains above it. At 5,200ft on NE there was 25cm over the early Feb Crust, with 4F facets just above it. ECTP Mod on this layer here.
On a NE aspect at 6,000ft HS was 120cm. There was a thin layer of buried surface hoar down 15cm. The slab became 1F hard, before a 4F- layer of 2mm faceted grains (~5cm thick) over a decomposing 1cm thick crust with a notable yellow/brown hue. Beneath this was 4F+ layer of rounding facets over the early February Crust, which was down 60cm from the surface. Compression tests yielded mixed results but identified the weak layer as the 2mm facets above the yellow/brown crust. A propagation saw test on this layer showed it could propagate (PST 40/100 (End)).