Observation: Public

Observation Details

Signs of Unstable Snow

Observations

We observed 12" of new snow above the 3/31 layer. When investigating the new snow we found a midstorm layer that failed in shovel shear tests, compression, and shovel tilt tests. We observed subtle signs of wind transport, including textured snow surfaces and stiffened snow. We did not encounter wind slab along our route. We saw some cornices on the eastern side of the nearby ridgeline towards Crown point.

Weather wise, we experienced some light snow showers in the morning with sun breaks throughout the midday. Winds were calm to nonexistent. There was noticeable sun effect on sunny snow surfaces when the sun came out from the clouds: shedding from trees, sun crust, and the upper snowpack gained cohesion. The snow on shady areas remained dry and loose.

The 3/31 crust was noticeably more stout on sun exposed aspects. We did not observe any avalanches, with the exception of a few loose wet along the bottom section of the Crystal Mountain boulevard.