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Observation: Park City Ridgeline

Observation Date
11/22/2024
Observer Name
Greg Gagne
Region
Salt Lake » Park City Ridgeline
Location Name or Route
Park CIty Ridgeline
Weather
Sky
Broken
Wind Direction
South
Wind Speed
Moderate
Weather Comments
Gusty winds from the south, but no drifting as there is little snow available for transport on southerly aspects.
Snow Characteristics
Snow Surface Conditions
Dense Loose
Wind Crust
Melt-Freeze Crust
Damp
Snow Characteristics Comments
HS along Park City ridgeline is 30-60 cms, with about 45 cms on most slopes facing NW/N/NE.
Due to recent warm temperatures, the snow at the surface was not that weak and doesn't seem a concern as a weak layer if it gets buried.
Red Flags
Red Flags
Poor Snowpack Structure
Red Flags Comments
Weak, faceted snow down near the ground.
Snow Profile
Elevation
9,900'
Comments
Travel today was along the Park City ridgeline to get a sense of snow coverage and the snowpack ahead of what may be a decent storm later Saturday into Sunday. Overall, most southerly slopes are bare or hold little snow. I didn't get a chance to look at many aspects facing east or west, but coverage is thin on these aspects. I focused on the "shady" slopes facing northwest/north/northeast where there is generally 45 cms of snow, with the bottom 10-20 cms faceted.
When traveling along many slopes, my skis collapsed down to the weak layer near the ground. These weren't loud collapses, but it was an indication that the weak snow at the base of our snowpack likely won't be able to hold much of a load. I dug a handful of pits, and all were poor quality ECTN (no propagation), but on one slope on a NE aspect at 10,000 that had a stronger wind slab on top of the facets, I got ECTP22 (photo below). This tells me our faceted snowpack just needs a slab on top to possibly become reactive.
Photos of
Mt. Raymond
Gobblers Knob
Meadow Chutes (with Solitude Resort in the foreground)
Radar Love Bowl
Video description of current snowpack and what the likely concerns are on the northerly aspects with faceted snow buried near the ground.
Video
Today's Observed Danger Rating
None
Tomorrows Estimated Danger Rating
None
Coordinates