Quick report
On the ascent from the truck the snow actually traveled better than expected. The wet heavier snow near the surface was supportable and allowed for good gliding. There was around 3-4 inches of new snow above 7500' and anywhere from 1-2 feet of total snow in this area. I dug three different pits above 7500' on NW-N-NE aspects and all three pits showed a very similar snowpack with wetter heavier snow near the top and weaker snow near or at the surface. Stability test did show initiation in CT and ECT but did not produce any signs of propagation. The weather throughout the afternoon was intermittent snow showers followed by breaking skies, less then 1 in hr. On the descent, I did not try to ride at all, despite the supportable snow there are still a lot of hazards within our shallow snowpack. When leaving the parking lot @ 1445, the snow was falling steady and heavy.
No signs of instabitlity observed.Weather
- Cloud Cover
- obscured
- Wind Loading
- moderate
- Recent Snowfall
- 4-6cm
- Snow Avail For Transport
- moderate amounts
Stormy day with moderate to strong wind gusts. Snowfall was in and out throughout the afternoon. Less then 1 inch of snow per hour.
Snowpack
The snowpack in this area was primarily upside down with wet heavy snow on the top half and weak faceted snow on the bottom half to the ground. There was also a melt freeze crust 25cm down that is weak and brittle and seems to be breaking down. Despite the upside down feel and weak facets within, all layers were saturated with moist snow that is compressible by hand including the basal facets at the bottom. Stability tests showed signs of initiation in both CT and ECT but no signs of propagation.