Quick report
A pleasant winter scene at Bunny Flat welcomed Sam and I today; the air was cold, the wind light, and snow was falling with four inches of fresh at the trailhead. We set out on snowmobiles to assess the new/old snow interface on southern and eastern aspects of Green Butte and westerly aspects of lower Gray Butte. Low visibility limited our access to higher elevations. We measured 22 centimeters of new, dry snow resting on a thin rain crust that formed because of yesterday's 9,000 foot snow levels. This light snow is available for transport and will continue to load onto NW-N-NE-E-SE aspects. At all locations traveled, we found the new snow to be unconsolidated and did not observe any wind slabs, shooting cracks, or collapsing. It is quite possible that you could trigger an avalanche at higher elevations, especially in steep, leeward terrain.
No signs of instability observed.Weather
- Air Temp
- 27
- Cloud Cover
- obscured
- Wind Loading
- light
- Rain Elevation
- 5,000
- Recent Snowfall
- 22
- Snow Avail For Transport
- moderate amounts
From 7,000 feet and up, temperatures held steady in the upper 20s with light to moderate WSW wind and snowfall rates averaging two centimeters an hour (S2).