Observation Date
3/3/2024
Observer Name
Gagne
Region
Salt Lake » Big Cottonwood Canyon » Mid Canyon Big Cottonwood
Location Name or Route
Mill D North - Beartrap - Reynolds
Comments
Overall I was finding conditions more stable than expected given how much wind-drifting was occurring. Other than some minor cracking in fresh wind drifts in the morning, most wind slabs were unreactive. The new snow and wind drifts were well-bonded to the old snow surface, and I only noticed graupel within the storm snow, but other observations from today mentioned graupel was acting as a weak layer.
In the photo below, you can clearly see the March 1 "Dust Crust" from the strong pre-frontal winds and we'll see this layer for the rest of the winter. I was getting clean shears in a thin layer of decomposing fragments just below the dust layer, but pit scores were poor-quality ECTN that crumbled in the storm snow. I do not expect this layer below the dust crust to be a problem going forward.
Many exposed slopes facing southwest were scoured from strong pre-frontal winds Friday and Saturday.
Today's Observed Danger Rating
Moderate
Tomorrows Estimated Danger Rating
None
Coordinates