Observation: No Name Bowl

Observation Date
11/28/2018
Observer Name
mark white
Region
Salt Lake » Park City Ridgeline » No Name Bowl
Location Name or Route
No Name Bowl, PC Ridgeline
Weather
Sky
Overcast
Precipitation
Light Snowfall
Wind Direction
Southwest
Wind Speed
Light
Weather Comments
Warm and moist with periods of snow and graupel.
Snow Characteristics
New Snow Depth
1"
New Snow Density
Medium
Snow Surface Conditions
Powder
Snow Characteristics Comments
About an inch of new snow mixed with graupel by the time I left at 2:00pm
Red Flags
Red Flags
Recent Avalanches
Poor Snowpack Structure
Comments
Went out to No Name Bowl not knowing quite what to expect, I was there on Sunday and was getting collapsing on the ridgeline and decided to leave the main bowl alone not being sure how much old snow was in it. I basically ski cut along the top of it until I got to the center punch with no cracking or collapsing and then worked my way down the slope 10 or 20 feet and dug a hand pit in the starting zone, according to my compass and altimeter I was just below 9550ft on a E-NE facing slope. Once I dug down I discovered there was not much of a October crust and the facets at the ground were a little damp, and the snow above that was not a cohesive slab. The more northerly shady part of the bowl appeared to have avalanched during the storm. My thoughts are that the middle of the bowl did have old snow but it wasn’t as weak as other places on the PC Ridgeline that I’ve looked and didn’t have the October crust for a bed surface. And like Drew alluded to on the forecast the surface hoar had been destroyed by the combination of warm temperatures, SW winds and a layer of graupel falling on it. Photos: mostly graupel in the new snow, no evidence of surface hoar being buried in tacked and pit location at the top of the track
I’m thinking we are moving towards moderate on all but high elevation NE through NW but with more snow and wind in the forecast all bets might be off.
Today's Observed Danger Rating
Moderate
Tomorrows Estimated Danger Rating
Moderate
Coordinates