Quick report
- Red Flags
- Poor Snowpack Structure
- Red Flags Comment
- <p>The primary concern we noted today was the small-grain facets just below shallow wind drifts. </p>
We examined multiple aspects while climbing up to 10,420'. Visibility was good, and signs of this week's earlier wind event were obvious. Throughout our travels, we found 4-6 inches of low-density new snow sitting atop a variety of snow surfaces, ranging from stout wind board along much of the ridgeline to a firmer crust with small-grain facets above it on solar aspects.
In some areas, the wind drifts seemed shallow and sensitive, while in others, the drifts were hard and supportable, allowing travel far out onto them. There is significant spatial variability in the distribution of the wind slab at the moment.
The most concerning areas are the shallower ones, where small-grain facets are directly beneath the wind slab on the old snow surface. On a northeast aspect at 9,620', we observed a 4F to 1F hard slab sitting atop F-hard small-grain facets. This supportable slab propagated at ECTP12, approximately 20 cm down. This was repeatable.
NE Aspect - 9620' - ECTP12
Small observed cracking - NE Aspect - 9500'
Wind texture observed from the top of 10420' looking down canyon
Snowpack
I was pleasantly surprised by the soft snow surface. With the ease in winds over the last 24 hours, the soft snow was still present in many areas, with about 4-6 inches in most spots.