Observer Name
Alden, Zanetti
Observation Date
Saturday, December 10, 2022
Avalanche Date
Saturday, December 10, 2022
Region
Salt Lake » Little Cottonwood Canyon » Grizzly Gulch
Location Name or Route
Grizzly Gulch
Elevation
9,200'
Aspect
North
Trigger
Skier
Avalanche Type
Hard Slab
Avalanche Problem
Wind Drifted Snow
Depth
8"
Width
10'
Snow Profile Comments
This profile was dug roughly 0.5 miles from the wind slab triggered, these are two separate observations.
On this west facing aspect with an HS of 107cm, we found a snowpack that appeared to be gaining strength. Other than the top 2cm, no layer in the profile had a temperature gradient in excess of 0.8C/10cm. Additionally, while a relatively large (40cm) layer of 4F facets were observed, they were becoming more cohesive which was evident when digging.
ECTX and PST 91/100 (end) @63cm further confirmed this strength at this specific location, as did a number of layers with some sintered rounding faceted grains.
However, this profile is from an aspect on the edge of polar vs. solar and likely sees some sun during this time of year. As such, it may not have had as weak faceted grains as aspects with less sun prior to the recent precipitation.
Comments
Went out to dig a pit near Michigan City to see what how the snowpack structure was looking like in an area with a deeper snowpack. On the way back, we noticed a small test slope roughly 10 feet long and 10ft vertical with an obvious wind drift and windlip. Upon walking on top of the windlip, cracks shot out 10ft from where I was standing and triggered a wind slab. Wind transport was the name of the game today as at times we saw both upslope and downslope wind transport on the same NW aspect. It appears that due to the strength of the winds, any aspect could theoretically be loading currently depending on surrounding terrain features.
HS-ASc-D1-R1
Video
Coordinates