East Beckwith

We found a shallower snowpack than you might encounter in other places in the Northwest Mountains.  Below treeline, the snowpack was generally 50 to 70 cm deep.  A small amount of cohesive snow lingers in the 'slab' that formed after Christmas.  Dry weather and shallow conditions are faceting the snowpack.  As you climb near treeline, previous winds have formed more cohesive slabs on leeward terrain features, keeping triggered avalanches a possibility on wind-loaded terrain.   

We traveled on northerly-facing terrain up to 11,600 feet and didn't encounter any issues with the snowpack until a drifted feature near treeline.  Below treeline, the slab above the Christmas Crust is about a foot thick and faceting away during the current dry period.  ECT's produced N or X results.  As we neared treeline, stiffer snow was found from previous wind.  One test site on a northeast slope produced an ECTP 12 on a thin layer of facets in between storm snow from early January.  This result has not been found in other places around the range.