Exec. Director Chad Brackelsberg stomped around mid Weber Canyon Sunday, finding mostly stable snow and great riding conditions. In the video above, Chad describes his findings whilst conducting a Propagation Saw Test (PST). His results as well as our collective observations and lack of avalanche activity suggest we're shifting towards more stable snowpack characteristics, but still remain in the "low probability/high consequence" realm. An oldie, but a goodie, Trent explains how to set up and interpret this test.

A persistent weak layer (PWL) of faceted, old, sugary snow near the ground is found mostly in mid and upper elevation terrain facing the north half of the compass. Remember- late December storms stacked up remarkable amounts of dense, heavy, water laden snow, coupled with very strong winds, bringing the weak layer to its tipping point. And while all of the snow since Christmas is a good thing that eventually heals this weak layer, it doesn't happen overnight. Sure, things are calming down, avalanche activity isn't off the charts, and it's been a few days since any significant slides have been reported. But the big red flag is that last weeks avalanches continue breaking on our early season problem child or, in snow-geek-speak... persistent weak layer (PWL). So, while conditions are slowly improving, I'd continue steering clear of any steep, wind drifted slope, especially those that harbor old October snow.

For now what makes this layer dangerous is:

Here's the good news - This layer doesn't exist on south facing slopes which have excellent coverage, and soft creamy powder.

A few older wind drifts formed last week may still react to our additional weight. Found mostly on the leeward side of upper elevation ridges, don't get caught off guard by a cross-loaded terrain feature like a chute or gully. Keep an eye out for and avoid any fat, rounded piece of snow, especially if it appears chalky or sounds hollow like a drum.