Quick report

Galena Peaks/Fireplug

Avalanche.org observerCentral Sierra Nevada
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Quick report

It was a great day for some storm skiing in low angle sheltered terrain in the Tamarack area. Approximately 1’ of storm snow in this area when we arrived at 8:30 am, with snow continuing to accumulate throughout the day. Surface snow was F hard with denser more supportable snow underneath. We chose to avoid larger steep slopes and upper elevation terrain due to strong SW winds and transport of new snow. Aside from a brief period of sun in the morning, snow showers continued throughout the day, refilling our tracks between laps. We observed several periods of intense snowfall and large graupel. We did not observe any cracking or collapsing, however we also avoided wind loaded features. A few short steep slopes that we committed to did have minor sloughing within the new snow. New snow has been quite effective at hiding a variety of rocks and other obstacles which we managed to find. Coverage is especially thin below 8500’, but is better on N, NE and E aspects.