Sardine Can Wall

Today we toured the Sardine Meadows area to see how the recent snowfall had affected Below tree line terrain and Near tree line terrain. From the top of the Sardine can wall we were able to view  alpine terrain near Leavitt Lake and McKay creek from afar. We toured on a NE aspect looking for signs of wind transport, warming snow, Loose dry and felt for the crust layer buried under the new snow.

In our location there were minimal signs of wind slab  besides a few exposed cornices that had small breaks when we stomped on them. Higher in the terrain where we often see some wind affected snow showed signs of wind pressed  snow but presented no concerns of slabs forming. Wind speeds were not strong enough to create wind slab problems below or near tree line. With that being said there are  large amounts of snow available for transport when we get the forecasted high winds in the near future. Something to take note of.

We saw no signs of warming snow even exposed S aspects at low elevations. Snow surfaces remain cold.

On a test slope I was able to get a small dry loose sluff to run. It was small in size but on consequential terrain or on a more pronounced slope it should be a concern for skiers and sledders.

The crust layer that is now buried about 10 inches below the surface is generally on N-NE- N aspects and varies in thickness and hardness.  Under this crust layer there is a facet layer from our dry spell in January.  We did not see any concerns  with the crust/facet combo today but with new snow and the potential for slabs being formed on top of the layer. It is something to keep in mind as wind and snow are on the menu for next week. We will be taking note on how the new snow bonds with our current snowpack.

Small test slope resulted in a small dry loose sluff