Quick report
We toured out towards the Mammoth Crest in the Lakes basin today to survey for new snow totals and to see if we could find any fresh wind slab deposits.
- Evidence of our recent extreme wind events are everywhere.
- Tree debris litters the ground in more sheltered areas at lower elevations.
- Surfaces were wind-textured to some degree everywhere we traveled today.
- Wind boards of varying thickness were encountered in more exposed areas near and above treeline.
- Surfaces were also stiffened in more sheltered areas, though we managed to find pleasant and constant sliding conditions in protected north-facing terrain.
- Despite the copious evidence of recent wind transport, we noted no signs of instability along our tour. We found a few terrain features with recent loading, though these deposits were unreactive to my weight.
Weather
- Air Temp
- 31
- Cloud Cover
- clear
- Wind Loading
- none
- Recent Snowfall
- 2.5
- Snow Avail For Transport
- moderate amounts
It was a beautiful day in the hills today with mostly clear skies, light winds, and temperatures near freezing.
Snowpack
- I dug in at 10,400' on a north aspect and found a largely right-side-up snowpack.
- The snow that fell prior to December is all faceted to some degree, though I did not have any concerning results in my stability tests today
- see profile for more details