Snowbird Glacier
Quick report
The goal of the day was to ride snowmachines to the Snowbird Glacier via Dog Sled Pass to assess weather stations, snow depth, past avalanche activity, and make some turns. We succeeded in some of our mission and failed at others. Numerous people have been out riding on the Willow side with little soft snow left, although today was a quiet day in the backcountry. We are more than overdue for a storm. We observed numerous old avalanches from the last big cycle, ending 1/27. Today we enjoyed good company, great views, good stability, and variable snow conditions including crusts, firm faceted surfaces, and groomed trails thanks to the SnowRiders all the way to Lucky Shot.
No recent signs of instability were observed today.Weather
- Air Temp
- 19
- Cloud Cover
- scattered
- Wind Loading
- previous
- Recent Snowfall
- 0
- Snow Avail For Transport
- small smounts
Today could have gone either way-clouded out or sunshine. Fortunately, visibility was good enough to ride all day with scattered clouds and sunshine popping through at times. Winds were visibly stronger as we passed Lucky Shot and near Dog Sled Pass. Calm winds with light and variable gusts were reported from the Snowbird weather station, with mild temps in the twenties.
Snowpack
We observed a mostly right-side up snowpack with depths up to 320 cm at upper elevations and near the Snowbird Glacier. Near passes and gaps a more recent 2-5cm wind slab formed but was unreactive and variable in thickness and consistency.