Observation: Public
Observation Details
Name:
Enji CooperObservation Date:
March 16, 2021Submitted:
March 17, 2021Zone or Region:
OlympicsActivity:
Walking/HikingLocation:
Mount Ellinor (winter chute)Observed Avalanches
Did you observe any avalanches?
YesAvalanche Type:
Wet LooseSize:
Size 1: Relatively harmless to peopleElevation:
Above treeline (at various points)Aspect:
EComments:
Observed various D0.5/D1 west loose avalanches (old and occurring over the course of the day) along the winter chute up Ellinor yesterday.Signs of Unstable Snow
Observations
* Cold in the morning: car got stuck high-centering over 4" deep snow; top 1.5" was a hard icy slab, whereas everything underneath was storm snow/powder (location was 47.5133, -123.2283).
* Lots of rollerballs (tennis ball sized) falling late morning/early afternoon.
* Snow was falling off the trees below treeline, resulting in slush.
* Quick hand-shear test identified surface level instability (diffused break) with a slab around 1.5" in depth.
* Cornices were on ridges mostly on northern/western aspects, but there was one on an eastern aspect (we could see) under the false summit (47.5216, -123.2577).
* Snow up chute was hard to penetrate with crampons; couldn't get much purchase late morning to early afternoon.
More details are found here: https://www.wta.org/go-hiking/trip-reports/trip_report-2021-03-16-3933685420 .
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