Quick report
- Aspect
- Northwest
- Red Flags
- Rapid Warming
- Elevation
- 2926 m
- Slope Angle
- 36°
- Red Flags Comment
- <p>No refreeze to speak of for two nights, and warm day time temps. At low elevations we could start small wet-loose "slides" by tossing a snowball at a steep slope.</p>
Snowpack
- Instability Comment
- <p>On our tour, wet snow was the only game in town. </p> <p>Wet loose avalanches were observed in north-facing upper Days at 10,000'. East had more activity, including a pocket with a heart-shaped crown that appeared to be a natural.</p> <p>In upper Banana Days the the damp snow was supportable, but as we neared the steep roll-over at 9,400' our skis started pushing down into the snow. Trent paused at the top to warn the group of wet avalanches, and his prediction was born out. The slide started so slowly that the skier who triggered it was down and off to the side before he knew anything was moving. But the wet snow picked up speed and would have packed a decent punch. the rest of us skied the bed surface and didn't miss much!</p> <p> </p> <p>Active roller balling: I watched Trent nearly get flattened by one of the biggest roller-balls I've seen. These things were gouging down a foot as they descended.</p> <p> </p>
Only an inch of new snow from the night's "storm", with a trace of graupel added at around 3 in the afternoon.
We toured between 7,400' and 10,500 feet, and found damp surface snow on all aspects and elevations. Below the surface the conditions ranged from damp fine-grained snow on the high northwest, to cohesion-less melt-freeze grains almost everywhere else.
Despite being able to plunge a ski pole basket through the wet mess, the surface up high was mostly supportable for wide boards and skiing was OK.