Observation Date
2/23/2014
Observer Name
Joey Dempster
Region
Uintas » Bear River Ranger District » East fork of Bear » Boundary Creek
Location Name or Route
East Fork Bear River/Boundary Creek
Weather
Sky
Clear
Wind Direction
West
Wind Speed
Moderate
Weather Comments
Saturday: 3"-6" new, but steady W/NW winds transported large amounts of snow far down from ridgelines.
Sunday: Clear skies, warm temperatures. Steady 20mph winds on ridges, but little additional transport.
Snow Characteristics
New Snow Depth
4"
New Snow Density
Low
Snow Surface Conditions
Powder
Dense Loose
Red Flags
Red Flags
Wind Loading
Poor Snowpack Structure
Red Flags Comments
2 feet of recent snow sitting on some of the worst depth hoar I have ever seen. I was punching through in many places and falling to the ground. The recent snow sitting on top is cohesive and slabby. Very, very poor structure.
Avalanche Problem #1
Problem
New Snow
Trend
Same
Problem #1 Comments
See above. New snow is cracking and sliding on the depth hoar in switchback corners and hand pits. The overlying slab has been sitting for a while, has lost some stored energy, and isn't obviously reactive, but the bonding to the faceted snow underneath is extremely poor and, as Tom has said on many occasions like this "I wouldn't give you a nickel for it." Saturday's storm produced 4-6 inches new, much of which was blown around by high winds, and this additional loading could easily put these slopes on a hair trigger. Personally, I did not feel comfortable at all on slopes over 30 degrees, even without signs of recent avalanches. In my estimation, large human triggered deep slab avalanches are a definitely possibility on 35 degree slopes in the Western Uintas.
Snow Profile
Aspect
North
Elevation
9,700'
Slope Angle
25°
Comments
This is a picture of the advanced, persistent faceted snow that exhibits very poor (nonexistent, really) bonding to the recent (2 weeks worth) snowfall (which is effectively a relatively cohesive slab layer).
Today's Observed Danger Rating
Considerable
Tomorrows Estimated Danger Rating
Considerable
Coordinates
