Quick report
- Aspect
- Northeast
- Elevation
- 3200 m
- Slope Angle
- 24°
The snowpack in the Uintas is looking great. Facets near the ground used to spill out of the pit wall because they were so loose and weak. Now we can make a clean pit wall and the hard hardness has noticeably increased which corresponds with its increase in strength.
Have they gone away? No. With a massive load of snow, any snowpack can break. Until that comes (and it will :) triggering an avalanche is unlikely in most places with deep snow. There is still a chance of triggering a slide above treeline in rocky terrain where snow depths are a little more variable.
Find deep snow and you have stable snow.
The thing we'll be watching is the snow surface. It is getting whiplash and generally faceting and even getting some surface hoar. The main thing is that clear skies overnight cause the snow surface temperature to plummet to near 0 degrees F while air temperatures can be 20 degrees warmer. During the day the snow surface can warm up. The back and forth temperatures cause the faceting. You can see it in the photo below. HOWEVER, it can all change before the next snowfall. We'll see what happens.
The powder isn't deep, but it's still soft and there's great traction!
Snowpack
- Instability Comment
- <p>The old, faceted snow near the ground is easy to find. However it's buried deeply and is gaining strength.</p>
Soft powder on most slopes. Ice crust on south aspects.