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Observation: West Desolation Ridge

Observation Date
1/5/2024
Observer Name
Coyne / Meisenheimer
Region
Salt Lake » Big Cottonwood Canyon » Mill D North » West Desolation Ridge
Location Name or Route
Bear Trap to West Desolation Ridge
Weather
Sky
Obscured
Precipitation
Light Snowfall
Wind Direction
North
Wind Speed
Calm
Weather Comments
Snowfall for most the day. Adding up to 4-8 inches of new snow. Cold.
Snow Characteristics
New Snow Depth
6"
New Snow Density
Low
Snow Surface Conditions
Powder
Dense Loose
Faceted Loose
Wind Crust
Melt-Freeze Crust
Snow Characteristics Comments
4-8 inches of very low density snow has fallen. The sunny slopes are crusted. ANY slope with enough shade is weak and faceted.
Red Flags
Red Flags
Poor Snowpack Structure
Red Flags Comments
The snowpack structure is poor at best. Maybe a better word would be plagued, or perhaps we are screwed for now. Lots of weak and faceted snow throughout the range.
Comments
We still haven't added enough of a load to get things going as of this afternoon. Two factors that could increase the avalanche danger:
The first: If overnight / tomorrow winds play enough of a role, we could see soft slabs of wind-blown snow across the upper elevation terrain (I did not see enough wind loading yet to make a difference). This could change quickly.
The second: we get enough snow overnight & into tomorrow to create enough density change over the weak snow surface (which doesn't take much as our surface is so weak).
In either case, the avalanche danger will rise with each additional snowflake or every gust of wind. By Sunday morning, we could see enough snow or wind to tip the scales and make conditions more dangerous for the foreseeable future.
Please be smart and respect this weak layer. It's no joke! Never trust faceted snow. I am confident the avalanche conditions will be dangerous for a while if the subsequent few storms happen. I wish I had better news. Be safe, everyone.
Video
Today's Observed Danger Rating
Moderate
Tomorrows Estimated Danger Rating
Moderate
Coordinates