Quick report
Strong winds were traveling across the mid-elevation slopes from the south, while surprisingly sparing the lower and upper elevations from the stronger gusts. This could be an isolated observation for the day, however. The crust and amount of old, faceted snow, observed from digging are consistent with observations from east aspects travelling in the mountains before the recent storm. At around 8000' along the ridge, I observed avalanche debris from a reported avalanche on 12/15. The most wind experienced during my tour was along the ridge at this elevation, from the south, and re-loading the start zone. The 1-2' crown and debris were still visible through the re-loading and new snowfall.
Weather
- Cloud Cover
- overcast
- Wind Loading
- moderate
- Recent Snowfall
- 5
- Snow Avail For Transport
- large amounts
Snowpack
Wind effected snow was observed along ridges, but above 8,000' on east aspects there was less evident wind loading. At 8,950' on the east aspect, the snow height was 90cm and a compression test resulted in a non-planar CT5 at 70cm. A snow pit on the east aspect at 9330', with a height of 98cm, resulted in a ECTN26 at 37cm, producing a non-planar break towards the bottom of the new storm snow. This pit revealed a crust at 23cm and distinct facets at 21cm to the bottom of the snowpack, though this layer of concern did not react to the ECT.