Quick report
- Red Flags
- Recent Avalanches, Wind Loading, Cracking, Poor Snowpack Structure
- Red Flags Comment
- <p>Cracking noticed on a variety of aspects. Wind loading noticed on West, South and North aspects. Still weak snow on the ground. A few new wind slabs noticed in my travels. </p>
Pic 1, 2 & 3- East Bowl of Silver Fork. Unknown trigger. Came across at 2pm on Friday. Looks like it could have been either skier triggered or a natural cornice fall. Likely to be a windslab that possibly stepped down in places. Hard to tell timing due to the bed surface loading back in again. But would guess that it occurred in the late morning.
Pic 4- Older persistent slab avalanche.
Pic 5- Shallow 4" wind slab on South aspect
Pic 6-Snow Transporting on 11k ridge lines
Pic 7- Facet on 3mm grid from 10k on a North aspect.
Snowpack
- Instability Comment
- <p>Noticed primarily on West, South and North aspects with cross loading in many places. A few of these seamed like they stepped down into faceted snow. </p> <p>Lower probability, high consequence situation still going on. I feel the next few days we might have a higher chance of triggering a persistent slab from a wind slab that steps down. The bridge in LCC and BCC seams stronger than that outside the cottonwoods. However I know a high amount of spacial variability exists out there. Like Cowboy said the other day "I am not ready to trust a bridge that may break."</p>
Like Evelyn said in yesterdays forecast the winds were a spoiler for terrain not sheltered.