Quick report
- Aspect
- Northeast
- Elevation
- 2865 m
- Slope Angle
- 25°
Wind-affected snow surfaces on upper elevation north-facing slopes.
The thickness of the windboard varies across exposed slopes: punchy skinning and challenging skiing.
Southwest, south, and southeast-facing slopes up to nearly 8500 feet are nearly snow-free.
The "white-brick" road...
Snowpack
- Instability Comment
- <p>On my exit, late in the afternoon, I was able to trigger 2 slow-moving, size 1, wet loose avalanches in the isothermic snow on mid elevation east facing slopes.</p> <p>Old natural wet loose avalanche near the Deer Creek saddle.</p>
Strong north winds created a pencil-hard wind board above 8,500 feet, extending even into the trees. This crust may lead to a dangerous, counter-intuitive setup with future storms: wind-hardened upper slopes may actually support new snow better than mid-elevation protected terrain. Travel in typically 'safe,' sheltered 'lower' elevations may be more dangerous due to the weaker underlying snow surface.
4 inch thick, pencil-hard wind board
Firm wind board on a forested slope.
Easy to intiate small loose dry avalanches on steep, sheltered, mid-elevation, north-facing slopes.