Quick report
- Red Flags
- Rapid Warming, Poor Snowpack Structure
- Red Flags Comment
- <p>Despite the fact that I was out until noon yesterday and saw how hard it was raining at 8500, I was still a bit shocked at how saturated the snow was; actual visual water below the surface snow, and when I stepped off my board I went up to my crotch in wet mush (exciting). As with many times this year, the unusual configuration of the snowpack made us wary. The better riding was up high where the slope angle is mellow, so we stayed up there, but on our exit on the lower, steeper lines we were being careful to keep moving/traversing (except when I crashed) to stay out of the way of any mushalanches that we might have gotten going as we descended. We did not actually create said mushalanches, but we left at noon and with further daytime heating (even on an easterly aspect) that may have become a player, again because of the weird new snowpack we now have. </p>
Snowpack
- Instability Comment
- <p>I don't know if it would actually be "loose" wet snow, but it will be interesting to see what happens over the next few days as new snow comes in and insulates (??) the mush below? on the south sides will it corn up faster because it's so wet? or will it never solidify due to the heat being released from the warmth of the water evaporating upwards? will the water in the mush percolate downwards to activate the deep instabilities? will it tighten up and bond better over the next 24 hours the way actual snow does? Clearly I need some lessons in thermodynamics. </p> <p>will there be enough new snow to be transportable with the projected winds, and will the winds be strong enough to pick up the soggy snow and actually move it? we were blowin' a fair bit of cold smoke today on our turns so I'd think yes, to a certain extent, sitff windslabs on ridges could be at play due to the winds over the weekend. </p>
there was a few inches of new snow on top of a surface that had been overall pretty buffed out by the rain. Supportable above about 8800, marginally-supportable below that.