Observation Date
4/7/2014
Observer Name
Ted Scroggin
Region
Uintas » Mirror Lake Highway » Lofty Lake
Location Name or Route
Hwy 150-Lofty Peak, Ruth Lake
Weather
Sky
Few
Wind Direction
Northeast
Wind Speed
Moderate
Weather Comments
Just a few clouds, but mostly clear and a nice day up in the higher terrain. The winds however, were gusty most of the day on the high ridge lines coming from the east and northeast.
Snow Characteristics
New Snow Depth
4"
New Snow Density
Medium
Snow Surface Conditions
Powder
Wind Crust
Damp
Snow Characteristics Comments
It felt like a mild winter day this morning, but things changed quickly once the sun started to warm things up. Some minor heat related issues, but did not notice too much wet activity. Very high north facing slopes still have nice soft powder, but lose a little elevation and the new snow quickly became damp and sticky.
Red Flags
Red Flags
Wind Loading
Cracking
Red Flags Comments
Pretty gusty east and northeast winds today moving plenty of new snow around and keeping the temperatures a bit cool along the ridge lines. East and northeast winds are a bit unusual and the south facing slopes were getting some decent wind loading throughout the day. I would suspect these will be a minor issue tomorrow with warmer temps and decreasing winds?
Avalanche Problem #1
Problem
Persistent Weak Layer
Trend
Decreasing Danger
Problem #1 Comments
New snow and gusty winds kept the wind slab problem the big hazard today mostly on the south half of the compass. I would think many of these will have settled-out tomorrow. A side note is the layer of graupel I was finding and some of these wind slabs might be a liitle senstive on this layer?
Avalanche Problem #2
Problem
Wet Snow
Trend
Increasing Danger
Problem #2 Comments
Not much wet issues today in the higher terrain, but I would suspect more wet problems with increasing temperatures. The new snow from Sunday will quickly take on some heat and become more unstable.
Comments
I was bit surprised with the gusty winds today, maybe the high pressure moving in kept the winds brisk. The new snow and gusty winds kept the snow moving around creating fresh wind drifts on the south half of the compass.
Today's Observed Danger Rating
Moderate
Tomorrows Estimated Danger Rating
Moderate
