Observation: Ant Knolls

American Fork has some of the weakest surface snow I've seen in my travels this past week. The top 25 cm of the snowpack is very weak and loose. This happened as a result of the very cold temperatures and clear skies from the past few days. The facets are 1-2mm in size and fist hardness. This could become a problem with future loading events. It was so slippery it was hard to hold a side hill while skinning. The snowpack is right side up with the top being fist hardness moving down into a one finger density. There is a very small layer of larger grained faceted snow at the ground. This is less concerning to me as it would take a tremendous amount of weight to make it reactive.

Right now this set up is not a bad thing. In fact, American Fork has a generally low avalanche hazard. In order for us to get avalanches we need a weak layer and a slab (more cohesive snow) on top. We have the weak layer but are lacking any type of slab. Once we get additional snow I would approach steep, shady terrain in American Fork with caution.

Photo: Snowpit - Antsy Pants, which is a northwest facing slope at 9,000' in elevation.