Quick report
Parking lot at Lake McDonald Lodge was 37F. No sun, occasional light drizzle mixed with sleet. Based on the snowpack, temperature, and liquid precip, we knew the most likely problem was wet loose activity. We knew this route was avalanche-prone, with several thousand feet of large slope above it. We had a recent trip report of it being climbed safely 4-5 days previously, with out significant additional snow since, but conditions had warmed by 5-10 degrees F. We kept an eye on slopes while approaching, and did not see any naturally triggered snow movement, though the slopes we disturbed did have the common pinwheels and roller-balls you see with steep wet snow. Started the route around 11 AM. While on the route, a small, naturally-triggered wet loose avalanche from above hit us, luckily not causing injury. We rappelled from the route without further incident, and over the course of the day observed 3-4 additional wet loose dumps coming down it, seeming to be triggered by the occasional very strong wind gusts coming through the Synder lake basin.
Weather
- Air Temp
- 37
- Cloud Cover
- overcast
- Recent Snowfall
- 0
Too warm and wet.
Snowpack
Snowpack completely saturated with moisture