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Observation: White Pine

Observation Date
1/26/2015
Observer Name
Wilson, Hardesty
Region
Salt Lake » Little Cottonwood Canyon » White Pine
Location Name or Route
White Pine, West Pass and Glacier Bowl
Weather
Sky
Clear
Wind Direction
Southwest
Wind Speed
Light
Weather Comments
Hot in the sun, gentle in the shade. Moderate winds confined to the high elevations and passes, otherwise calm air. Unseasonable, certainly, but glorious.
Snow Characteristics
Snow Surface Conditions
Dense Loose
Faceted Loose
Wind Crust
Melt-Freeze Crust
Damp
Snow Characteristics Comments
A day to ski for scenery not snowery. Lunar landscape in upper white pine: wind pillows, ripples, breakable and unbreakable crusts. At lower and non-northerly aspects, damp in the sun and melt-freeze crust in the shade. Ski-grabbing wet snow in places while exiting through low elevation trees. Still, shocking little pockets of dense powder (possibly faceting), in north facing trees at mid and higher elevations suggest that a savvy sniffer might yet find soft snow.
Red Flags
Red Flags
Recent Avalanches
Rapid Warming
Red Flags Comments
Wet activity across the canyon in a chute east of Tanners. Plenty of smaller wet sluffs in our own terrain: circa Tri chutes, SW facing off Red-Top, and South facing off Red Baldy, to name a few. The tri-chutes appeared to be skier triggered, not so for the others. Nothing noted to step down or suggest a slab, but enough debris and run to push a skier around.
Avalanche Problem #1
Problem
Wet Snow
Trend
Same
Problem #1 Comments
Hot January day, with roller balls and wet loose slides clearly visible. Unsure what another day of warm temps will bring. Some cloud cover predicted: will it keep it cooler or greenhouse?
Avalanche Problem #2
Problem
Persistent Weak Layer
Trend
Same
Problem #2 Comments
Substantial wind damage (loading, eroding, and general "jacking") noted in upper White Pine. Small wind slabs up to several inches thick broke around our feet skinning up to West Pass, and neither of us would have been shocked if the ski down Glacier Bowl had been spiced-up with a small wind slab avalanche.
Today's wet slides on Red-Top Mountain.
More wet activity on south facing Red Baldy
Today's Observed Danger Rating
Moderate
Tomorrows Estimated Danger Rating
Moderate