Quick report
- Red Flags
- Wind Loading, Cracking
Snowpack
- Instability Comment
- <p>We observed previously loaded slopes on most Northerly aspects above treeline. Human triggered avalanches in alpine terrain are a very real possibility right now. Towards the end of the day Westerly winds started to blow and drift snow around. Active snow transport was observed loading Northerlies ATL. </p> <p> </p> <p>Norieaga's Face. This North facing slope is showing obvious signs of wind loading.</p> <p>We poked around at the snow BTL and NTL today. The snow on Southerly facing slopes does not have much cohesion and seems pretty benign. We skied terrain over 30 degrees on Southerlies today. On Northerly aspects, the new snow was driven by the wind and has formed a soft, cohesive layer. On these slopes the new snow is poorly bonded to the old snow surface. Our consensus was the storm snow lacked enough cohesion to trigger a slab avalanche within the new snow, but a skier or rider could certainly trigger a fast and long running dry loose avalanche in steep Northerly facing terrain. Check out the video below to see some tests that demonstrate some easy shears and a poor bond to the old snow surface.</p> <p> </p> <p> </p>
There was 6-8 inches of new snow that fell yesterday and last night. The new snow was medium density and made for excellent skiing.