Quick report
Generally stable conditions exist. I saw a large amount of wind-affected snow surfaces, but didn't encounter touchy slabs.
No obvious signs of instability observed in my travels.Weather
- Cloud Cover
- few
- Wind Loading
- previous
- Snow Avail For Transport
- none
Mostly clear day, the winds were periodically blowing moderately from the NW. Temperatures were inverted this morning; the truck registered 0*F at the trailhead.
Snowpack
My goals today were to take a general inventory of snow surfaces and to track the distribution and sensitivity of wind slabs.
Snow Surfaces:
In sheltered locations, the upper 15cm of snow is first-hard near-surface facets. However, finding 'sheltered' locations is difficult. The wind, sun, or a combination of both have pressed or cooked the upper snowpack, which has stunted the development of widespread weak snow. Ski penetration was between 5-15 cm, and boot penetration was about 30cm. The wind has found its way into terrain typically considered sheltered.
Wind:
I did not encounter any fresh/sensitive wind slabs; however, the wind has moved an impressive amount of snow. The alpine above Castle Creek was heavily wind-affected. Sastrugi, dunes, and deep ripples made up most of the surfaces I could see. The wind has even formed pockets of hard slabs on mid-slope features in middle elevation terrain.