Observation: Public

Observation Details

Signs of Unstable Snow

Observations

Overall we observed very deep, soft, right side up snow from the trailhead at 3000' to the local prominence at 5000'. There was evidence of some wind transport on the South and East aspects and ridgeline. We dug a pit on the South-East aspect of the 5000' knob and observed an overall snow depth of 95cm consisting of 70cm of flight snow (fist to four fingers as descending from the surface and indicated in photo) over two distinct layers of facets with a thin (~5cm) layer of four finger snow between. The lower of the two was located at the ground layer and was approximately 10cm thick; the higher layer was located from approx. 15-20cm above the ground and was 3-4cm thick. We did not observe any collapsing or whumpfing during our travels or any other signs of instability.

Coverage was sufficient for good skiing but there were many shallowly buried fallen trees and brush that required care to avoid.