Quick report
- Cracking
- isolated
- A remarkable day out in the Mammoth Lakes Basin.
- Signs of instability were small and somewhat limited. However, warming was just beginning as I was leaving the field and I wonder what that would have changed if anything.
- The wind was transporting some snow along the ridgelines in specific areas. While likely soft, I suspect there are larger, more reactive wind slabs lurking in confined starting zones at higher elevations.
- The snow on sunny slopes was beginning to get moist and sticky as the morning went on.
Weather
- Air Temp
- 19
- Cloud Cover
- scattered
- Wind Loading
- light
- Recent Snowfall
- 45
- Snow Avail For Transport
- large amounts
Mostly cloudy skies during the morning. Clouds began to dissipate and lift by noon. Periodic very light snowfall as I moved toward crest. Winds were light out of the SSW, SW and occasionally gusted to moderate speeds. Snow transport was light in very specific areas.
Snowpack
- BTL at 9200' on an E aspect I found 35cm of F to F+ hard snow sitting on the firm, old snow surface. An extended column test performed produced no results within the new snow or at the old snow interface.
- At 9900' at about 1045 E aspects exposed to the sun were becoming moist and sticky on the surface.
- NTL at 10100' on a N aspect I found 55cm of F-4F- hard snow sitting on the firm, old snow surface. An ECT performed here produced ECTN21 30 cm below the surface on decomposing/fragmented precipitation snow grains.
- ATL at 10430' I found baby cornices and associated thin wind slabs. They were stubborn and small. Short cracks shot out from skis in the most wind stiffened areas which was surprisingly hard to find.