Quick report
- Cracking
- specific
- Collapsing
- specific
Extensive natural persistent slab activity up to D3, most in the D1.5-D2.5 range; the cycle appeared to end this morning. 2 to 3 foot soft slabs continue to give obvious signs of instability in low angle terrain with rumbling collapses and shooting cracks. The steeper, shady slopes that we traveled near had all avalanched or cracked and slumped during the storm. We felt comfortable skiing steep terrain below treeline on southerly aspects where the storm snow fell on dirt. On those wind-sheltered slopes, we saw no signs of mid-storm instabilities, and the snowpack was still fairly well embedded in vegetation.
Rumbling collapses once we got off the skin track, occasionally requiring a soft stomp, on NE, E, and W aspects. No signs of instability on steep SW aspects.Weather
- Cloud Cover
- scattered
- Wind Loading
- light
- Recent Snowfall
- 80
- Snow Avail For Transport
- moderate amounts
Alpine wind transport from NW winds eased about mid day. Just under 3 feet of settled storm snow.
Snowpack
Black and white difference in poor stability vs good stability when moving from slopes that held old snow prior to the storm (E, NE, W) compared to slopes that were bare ground (SW).
Avalanche
- Size
- D2
- Type
- SS
- Count
- 31
- Aspect
- NW
- Trigger
- N
- Elevation
- 11500 ft
Widespread natural cycle from Tuesday to Wednesday's storm on east, north, and west aspects. The only distinct avalanches that didn't fit this pattern was on windloaded S/SW aspects of Gothic Peak and Zacharys, ATL. Extensive flush on most NE facing paths N/BTL, and west to northwest was more active than usual, probably because of the lighter winds and very shallow/weak existing snowpack there before the storm. Many large slides on Climax Chutes, Schuylkill Ridge, west side of Gothic, and a few other alpine slopes of Emmons that I could see. Ruby Range remained obscured by clouds.