Observation: Snowbasin Backcountry

The one snow pit I had time to dig lacked energy and shears were all Q2 and Q3. The snowpack is not as weak as I expected it to be, but there is loose and uncohesive snow sandwiched between the two ice crusts. The one red flag for me is the lower, continuous 1-2" thick ice crust with the dust in it. There may be enough vegetation sticking through it to provide friction for the snow above, but it is a layer that could easily propagate a fracture a long distance.

Above 8500' on shady slopes, the snow surface was a mix of breakable and supportable rain and wind crusts.  Skiing consisted of about 50% side stepping and snowplowing, and 50% of delicate turning.  There's still a lot of rocks and ground features showing.  Snow is nearly non-existent on sunny slopes all the way to the ridgelines in the Ogden Mountains.  Some very thin snow lingers in the shadows as low as 7500' or so.