Observation: Mill D North

Observation Date
12/11/2021
Observer Name
E. Murray
Region
Salt Lake » Big Cottonwood Canyon » Mill D North
Location Name or Route
Mill D north
Red Flags
Red Flags
Recent Avalanches
Collapsing
Poor Snowpack Structure
Comments
Went for a walk towards the PC ridgeline up mill D north to see how the new storm snow has settled. Along the tour I was able to observe several recent natural avalanches all located around 9500 ft elevation N-NE and near ridgelines that would have been susceptible to wind loading during the storm. Each slide appeared to be 1-2 feet deep and 100-200 feet wide. The three paths that had recent activity were West desolation ridge, fire water, and Wilson glades. The cold clear weather and visibility made it easy to see a lot of terrain. A quick hand pit dug at around 9300 feet on a north faceing slope showed about a foot and a half of snow sitting on a faceted crust. Only observed one audible collapse on the tour at around 9400 feet will on a ridgeline adjacent to north facing terrain. The collapse had no cracking associated due to the mellow slope angle.
Today's Observed Danger Rating
Considerable
Tomorrows Estimated Danger Rating
Moderate