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Observation Date
2/19/2014
Observer Name
Hardesty, Wilson, and Feduschak
Region
Salt Lake » Little Cottonwood Canyon » White Pine
Location Name or Route
White Pine
Weather
Sky
Overcast
Precipitation
Moderate Snowfall
Wind Direction
West
Wind Speed
Moderate
Weather Comments
Marked frontal passage with wind shift, graupel and at times heavy snowfall. Amounted to perhaps 4" new. Graupel and rimed flakes improved conditions at mid elevations, providing just enough of a cushion on the low angles. You'd dig your tails through the old temp crusts on the steeper terrain there in the mids; low just didn't get enough new.
Snow Characteristics
New Snow Depth
4"
New Snow Density
High
Snow Surface Conditions
Powder
Melt-Freeze Crust
Red Flags
Red Flags
Wind Loading
Poor Snowpack Structure
Red Flags Comments
Moderate 'westerlies' in the mid-elevations though we stayed in protected terrain.
Avalanche Problem #1
Problem
Persistent Weak Layer
Trend
Same
Problem #1 Comments

Certainly A#1 issue for tomorrow with the continued strong northwesterlies overnight. Likely on a variety of aspects and elevations through terrain channeling. Classic evidence of this was mid elevation cornice build-up above terrain traps facing west...

Pockety hard slabs are likely tomorrow as well as myriad soft slabs in much of the exposed terrain, even well off the ridgelines.

Avalanche Problem #2
Problem
Persistent Weak Layer
Problem #2 Comments

Dug a few holes at 8000' or so - forgot my thermometer - but found much of the snowpack there on north facing to be near isothermal with no obvious layers holding free water or overly loose/unconsolidated. I don't mean isothermal to imply "unstructured"...as it well holds the classic structure from this year. Tests yielded variable results within 120-140cm snowpack, with some full propagation along the basal weaknesses, roughly 20cm up from the ground.

Today's Observed Danger Rating
Considerable
Tomorrows Estimated Danger Rating
Considerable