Observation Date
11/19/2012
Observer Name
Weed
Region
Logan
Location Name or Route
Grand Cornice
Comments
The warm temperatures and moist cloudy nights are keeping the shallow snowpack from rapidly rotting or becoming faceted or sugary and weak. The weakest snow is just below the prominent M/F-crust at the Oct/Nov interface. Heavily rimed dense snow offered us a chance to experience maritime-like snow conditions, otherwise known as Sierra Cement....
The Grand Cornice on Cornice Ridge is already growing, presenting an obvious example of a wind feature to avoid in steep terrain.
Rimed trees on the ridge reminded me of skiing on the east coast, but then rime isn't all that uncommon around here.... Shows why yesterday's moist snow stuck so well to the rocks.
I dropped a ways down into Upper Cottonwood in the Mount Naomi Wilderness on a west-southwest facing slope and found thin but workable conditions on a slope with no October snow as a base.
Coordinates