Quick report
I did not observe any cracking or collapsing while traveling around. Digging into the snow and poking around with poles shows that the snowpack structure is poor. A hard (1F) 2.5-foot-thick slab sitting on weak sugary facets exists in many locations in upper elevations. I recieved propogating test results on the 12/05 facets down 2.5 feet.
Feels like the classic, "first sign of instability will be the avalanche you trigger" conditions.
No cracking/collapsing/ recent avalanches observed.Weather
- Cloud Cover
- clear
- Wind Loading
- previous
Calm, cool, and clear day. Temperatures were inverted. Winds were calm.
Snowpack
Snow surfaces were heavily wind-affected from previous winds. I didn't feel any wind slabs stiffer than fist-hard, and they were 30cm at the deepest.
Upper Crusts:
Crusts are found 15cm and 40cm down. Small facets are associated with both crusts above/below. I did not get any cracking/collapsing, or propagation on either interface. I could see the upper crust becoming an issue with added snow or wind load.
Deep Facets:
Dug on a 9000' W facing slope. The 12/05 facets are down 50 to70cm. Facets are dry in deeper areas, and moist in shallower areas. I got propagation from moderate hits on the 12/05 facets in both deep and shallow locations. Slab overlying the facets is 1F+ hard and has multiple melt/freeze crusts within. Slab thickness ranges from 50cm to 70cm deep.