Observation: Public

Observation Details

Signs of Unstable Snow

Observations

We toured the south side route starting around 4:30am, summiting 11:30am, and returning to the car by 2:00pm. Northerly winds were sustained on the palmer snowfield and above at an estimated 25 mph, with blowing snow. The south side route exhibited a mixture of sastruggi, wind board, and rime ice on the ascent, softening slightly on the descent. Winds seemed to keep the snowpack relatively cool above devil’s kitchen; we did not witness loose wet slides or rollerballs (or even much falling rime ice) during our descent despite warm temperatures and strong sun. The hogsback appeared windloaded with a breakable ~1cm surface crust. Numerous climbers summited through the pearly gates and old chute, and multiple skiers descended the old chute; one such skier mentioned that the old chute contained breakable crust. We did not witness any avalanches today, though we did see a large (likely d2) crown on the slopes above illumination rock.