Quick report
- Red Flags
- Wind Loading, Rapid Warming
Started touring around 1000 under tropical conditions. Around 1130 winds bumped into light, gusting moderate in valleys and sustained moderate on ridgelines out of the W. By 1315, winds were light in valleys and sustained strong on ridgelines. Snow conditions in sheltered N aspects consisted of ~15cm of unconsolidated decomposing precip particles. All other aspects were every other type of snow particle; strasuggi, wind board, unconsolidated snow, M/F crusts, facets, etc... Even down in mid-elevation sheltered terrain there was active snow transport. Windslab was widespread but was unreactive. Cornices are massive.
Looking forward into next week we have a storm lined up. Its too early to make any specific predictions but with all the planar and hard surface conditions I would think we might see some larger new snow avalanches running on the interface. Furthermore, depending on storm characteristics, I would be even more cautious around cornices as some are already bus-sized.
Snowpack
- Instability Comment
- <p>Everything seemed pretty glued in from the winds.</p> <p>Lots of huge cornices on E ridgelines. While no evidence of reactivity, I would be careful on ridgelines and know where the ground ends and cornice begins. </p>