Quick report
- Red Flags
- Recent Avalanches, Heavy Snowfall, Cracking, Collapsing, Poor Snowpack Structure
- Red Flags Comment
- <p>Widespread cracking and collapsing, natural avalanches, remotely triggered avalanches, as well as avalanches releasing symathetically. Lots of snow in a short period of time.</p> <p>Not the largest or most dangerous, but probably the most sensitive avalanche conditions I have seen since 2012. (Which, coincidentally, occurred on Jan 21, 2012.)</p>
Once the current storm winds down, I imagine the natural activity will quickly cease, but I am thinking human triggered slides will remain possible/likely as the weak layer of low density stellars as well as buried facets (and possibly surface hoar in some isolated spots) will remain sensitive. With winds forecasted to increase, and well as additional snowfall, by mid-day Sunday we won't get much of a break from dangerous avalanche conditions for at least the next several days.
In-your-face instability this afternoon meant staying off of and well away from avalanche terrain. Photos and video show cracking and small avalanches on test slopes.
Snowpack
- Instability Comment
- <p>Very easy to trigger avalanches this afternoon on test slopes. We saw evidence of natural avalanches, and could get a failure as we even <em>approached</em> a steeper test slope. We avoided all avalanche terrain, and kept far back from avalanche runout zones. Even smaller slopes were leaving decent-sized debris piles.</p> <p>Largest avalanche we triggered was <strong>above</strong> a steep-sided gully (the gully bottom is a terrain trap). Approaching the top I tapped on the snowpack and the slide ran 25' to the gully bottom. It sympathetically released an avalanche on the other side of the gully that went up the other side and 100' across.</p> <p>These slides were either breaking within the storm snow, or at the interface of the Thursday Jan 19 snow that had a layer of low-density stellars that others have also reported as being sensitive. Slides were 30-40 cms (12-16") and very soft. </p>
Beautiful, over-achieving storm! Am especially excited to see the return of the low elevation snowpack.