Quick report
- Aspect
- Northeast
- Red Flags
- Heavy Snowfall, Wind Loading
- Elevation
- 2438 m
- Slope Angle
- 20°
- Red Flags Comment
- <p>Snowfall less heavy than in the Cottonwoods. None-the-less, periods of high PI and moderate winds led to cornice fall and small natural soft slabs in a couple locations.</p>
Right-side-up snowpack on a northeast slope at 8,000 feet. We wondered if we'd see propagation as Mark had in Bountiful, as we had in Meadows, or as Trent had in Mineral. We did not. Compression test got a resistant planar failure down 45cm on near surface facets with a hard tap from the shoulder (CT30 RP), but no propagation. In shovel shear tests, the graupel layer down 37cm sheared with moderate force, but didn't show up in the CT. Height of snow was 115cm, and there were no basal facets.
A quick pit on southeast facing 8,800 feet had various crusts with facets, but no propagation.
Hazard seemed basically low except where wind loading allowed for localized cracking and small soft-slab avalanches. Hard to get good photos in the white-out. If you squint you can see not only the cracks but a 12" SS-NC-D1-R1-I
The ridgeline varied from sharp to rounded, resulting in cornices and broad wind-affected stretches, respectively. Below is a photo of the latter.
Snowpack
Two more inches over the course of the tour, roughly 13" of soft snow above the New Year's crust.