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Observation: Meadows

Observation Date
12/16/2022
Observer Name
T Diegel, Patterson, Gregersen
Region
Salt Lake » Big Cottonwood Canyon » Silver Fork » Meadows
Location Name or Route
Silver Fork - Meadows
Weather
Sky
Clear
Weather Comments
cold clear day after 5 amazing days of continuous snow
Avalanche Problem #1
Problem
Persistent Weak Layer
Problem #1 Comments
Seems like strange days in the Wasatch, with typical frequent flier paths not avalanching but typical "safe" zones sliding. Why? Could be that people are staying away from the typical avy zones and huddling in typical safe zones that aren't now due to PWL, but the snowpack is weird. A theory that we came up with is that the wind event of last weekend in advance of The Big Storm blew so hard that it created a hard, thick slab up high that may have "bridged" over the PWL well-below, but at the lower elevations that windslab didn't get fully baked. At almost 9k in fairly exposed terrain the slab is 4-6" thick (see pic) and difficult to cut through, but the lower you go the smaller/weaker that windslab gets (because it was less exposed to the wind) and below that is practically air (the November facet layer) so the new snow has more opportunity to slide on the airy snow below. And perhaps coincidentally, there was just enough sun last week that there's a bit of a suncrust on the south sides, but that layer doesn't seem to be as thick/stout (sun crusts usually aren't as thick/stout as windslabs?). But it's still unnerving/counter-intuitive to go higher - and even more exposed? - to find "better" stability, and I'm not sure I'm willing to do that, even if viscerally I think it might be better? Weird. And weird makes me nervous.
Today's Observed Danger Rating
Moderate
Tomorrows Estimated Danger Rating
Moderate
Coordinates