Quick report
- Red Flags
- Recent Avalanches, Wind Loading, Cracking, Poor Snowpack Structure
- Red Flags Comment
- <p>This past southerly pulse (3/4-3/6) windloaded North through East faceing slopes above 9500'. Slopes with a shallow snowpack were and still are highly suspect with stiff overlaying slabs.</p> <p>We skied a lot of West during the storm with stripped/crossloaded uppers and found a stout thermal crust beneath up to and above 11k on slopes of a variety of steepness. Surface snow during the storm showed a bit of a density inversion with the southerly component of the storm seeming to have a little bit of colder snow underneath it (above the crust) and then some lighter snow on top of it all. We had some cracking in wind touched areas on 3/7 on Kletting Peak but no propagation. Heavy skier trigger sluffing was observed on slopes 38 degrees or more.</p> <p>3/8 we skied on the West side on Moffit Peak and observed two prior natural avalanches (likely from 3/5 or 3/6): one on Double Hill (Hardslab D2 NE 10500) and one on the southernmost peak of the Moffit massif (Hardslab/cornice fall D2 NE 10500)</p> <p>My general impression is that there's actually quite a bit of snow on the ground above 9500. in protected areas: Mill Creek ~180-200cm average @10500. Hayden Fork ~250cm @10800</p> <p>Riding conditions in general were 5 star.</p>
Snowpack
- Instability Comment
- <p>Targeted problem areas are recently loaded repeter slopes N - E facing. Fat snowpack areas with seasonal loading but in stubborn to avalanche areas (slopes under 35 or treed areas) are a totally differnt ballgame, the trick is knowing what animal you are riding... Windloading by itself (without facets below) did not seem to be a factor by 3/9.</p>