Snug Harbor to Lost Lake

Our mission was to look for recent avalanches and to check out the buried layer of surface hoar that has been responsible for many human triggered avalanches in the region recently. There was about 12” of new snow near Lost Lake and 6-8" near Snug Harbor. We saw one small snowmachine-triggered avalanche on Mt. Ascension that occurred earlier in the day and older avalanche debris which probably released earlier in the week. We dug several pits near V-Max and and Lost Lake, all with stable results. We did find surface hoar in one pit, which was buried about 2’ deep. This is the same scenario we have been seeing in Turnagain Pass where snow tests are not showing concerning results and people are still triggering avalanches. We are recommending people to be extra cautious as this weak layer is being remotely triggered from lower angle slopes and is creating large and wide avalanches even when the snow seems safe.

We dug 4 pits, two near the V-Max area and two near Lost Lake. We saw a layer of surface hoar buried 2' deep in one of the pits near Lost Lake. It averaged 4 to 6mm and was laid over. We did not get concerning results in our pit but this weak layer has been proven guilty of triggering large avalanches on slopes that had stable test results.

The total snow depth was about 7 to 8' deep. There was about 12" new snow near Lost Lake and 6-8" new snow closer to Snug Harbor. The sun was actively heating up the snow on steep southerly aspects, with widespread rollerball activity as soon as the sun poked out mid-day.