Observation: Public

Observation Details

Signs of Unstable Snow

Observations

I dug a few pits around the ski area just before the most recent storm at about 6200 ft, just below ridge top. What I found was a weak structure in areas of a shallow snowpack ( <100 cm). In these shallow areas I was getting full propagation on my ECT's on the facets near the ground ( see attached photo's). In areas where the snowpack is deeper, such as wind loaded areas at upper elevations , I was getting no results on stability tests and overall it seemed like these facets near the ground were rounding. These layers are easily identifiable by doing a hand hardness profile. That said, my biggest concern would be hitting a shallow spot within the snowpack or on wind loaded features at upper elevations.