Get Your Ticket to the 32nd Annual Backcountry Benefit on September 11th! Support Forecasting, Awareness, and Education
Ad
The National Forest Service Logo
icon-add Observation
Forecasts
Logan Ogden Salt Lake Provo Uintas Skyline Moab Abajos Weather Archives How to read the forecast
Observations & Avalanches
Submit Observation Observations Explorer All Observations Avalanches Fatalities Weather Place Names Map Archives
Education
Avalanche Class List UAC Class List Online Classes Resources and Tutorials Avalanche Awareness Develop Skills
Events
Store
About
Contact Who we are Core Values Staff Board of Directors Past Forecasters Sponsors Annual Reports Sign In
Blog
icon-add Observation
Donate / Join

Observation Date
12/29/2012
Observer Name
jakemacarthur
Region
Salt Lake
Location Name or Route
Flagstaff to Two Dogs and Upper Days
Weather
Sky
Few
Wind Speed
Light
Weather Comments
Beautiful Bluebird day with the masses.
Snow Characteristics
New Snow Density
Low
Snow Surface Conditions
Powder
Snow Characteristics Comments
Shady aspects still skiing really well, Southern aspects moving from creamy to not quite gloppy at the end of the day.
Red Flags
Red Flags Comments
No evidence of red flags. Lots of people skiing in the Days Fork with no clear signs of instability. Sloughing on steeper slopes was minimal.
Avalanche Problem #1
Trend
Decreasing Danger
Comments

Not sure how to categorize it, but I would say the main concern was spatial variability and depth of snow. In Two Dogs, I found the depth of the pack to range from 80 cm to 195 cm. A few other skiers uncovered a few rocks here and there. Depth hoar at the base of the pack. I did an ECT at the bottom of Two Days and the top of Upper Days. Both were ETCX - no failure. Skiing Upper Days, we started in nice creamy snow and transitioned to about 8 inches over wind slab. It was bonded well enough, but the inconsistent loading patterns from the prior wind were apparent all day.