Quick report
- Cracking
- specific
- Collapsing
- specific
Found a talkative snowpack on the north side of Cinnamon, with numerous collapses/cracks while crossing concave and leeward terrain features N/ATL. The NW to N wind events of the past few days have scraped snow off some slopes and drifted it into isolated hard slabs above treeline, shifting snow from some northerlies to a few southerlies.
We observed frequent collapses (about a dozen) on previously drifted N to NE aspects N/ATL failing 1 to 2 feet deep on basal facets. Below 11,500, they would radiate less than 10 feet, confined to small gullies and concavities. As we ascended higher, collapses spanned larger terrain features up to 50 feet or so. At these higher elevations, collapses sometimes required stomps or were triggered by the 2nd or 3rd person on the skin track.Weather
- Cloud Cover
- overcast
- Wind Loading
- previous
- Recent Snowfall
- 2
- Snow Avail For Transport
- small smounts
Some light drifting at the summit today. More significant drifting occurred during yesterday's NW wind event.
Snowpack
With regards to our future persistent weak layer, which is at or just below the snow surface right now: The snowpack is typically thin and weakest near or below treeline, and is more wind-affected, with less-developed near-surface facets above treeline. A few quick hand pits in sheltered terrain didn't reveal any buried surface hoar, but I'm not sure it will make a difference because the facets that make up most of the snowpack now are growing larger and weaker with each day. They're about 1mm and fist hard now.
Avalanche
- Size
- D1
- Type
- HS
- Aspect
- SE
- Trigger
- N
- Elevation
- 12100 ft
New since Eric was up there on Sunday.