Quick report
- Red Flags
- Poor Snowpack Structure
Coverage photos. Most of these slopes naturally avalanched Dec 6th and or have been battered by strong winds and have shallow and weak snowpacks.
Cardiac Ridge
Cardiac Bowl and LSB
Holy Toledo
Snowpack
- Instability Comment
- <p>There are 2 distinct structures I've observed in the last 3 days. The first structure worth noting is found on upper elevation slopes that avalanched during the December 6-7 avalanche cycle. Here, the snow depth is very shallow. 6 to 12 inches and consists entirely of faceted snow. The bad news is that this structure is common throughout many of the popular backcountry skiing slopes in Cardiff Fork and Days Fork. The other common structure I've noticed is in more sheltered north-facing terrain that did not avalanche; here, the snowpack is closer to 2-2.5 feet deep. The Persistent Weak Layer near the base of the snowpack has been inconsistent in producing propagating in stability tests. However, another notable layer is developing directly below the thin temperature crust now buried below a few inches of recent storm snow. </p>
A mostly supportable crust found on upper elevation northerly slopes up. This was less of a crust and more stiff wet snow that froze and became a harder surface layer. Thickness varied with elevation. Facets were consistently found directly below a thin crust below the dust/graupel layer. Best riding was found on southerly facing slopes where despite the thin coverage offered smooth and very supportable turning conditions.