Observation: West Willow

Observation Date
1/21/2015
Observer Name
mark white
Region
Salt Lake » Big Cottonwood Canyon » Willows » West Willow
Location Name or Route
West Willow Ridgeline
Weather
Sky
Clear
Wind Direction
Northwest
Wind Speed
Light
Weather Comments
Cold in the sun and shade today, NW winds light to moderate but chilly.
Snow Characteristics
Snow Surface Conditions
Faceted Loose
Melt-Freeze Crust
Snow Characteristics Comments

Snow surface continues to facet, still a nice mixture of graupel, and recrystalized snow in northerly terrain, melt freeze crust or wind crust on most other aspects.

Comments

Went to the West Willow Ridgeline looking for the last bastion of untracked snow around. Surface snow has already faceted, and seems like the whole snow pack might be soon to follow. We noted that the tails of our skis were sinking through the entire snow pack in some areas. West Willow is thin due to the solstice avalanching that cleaned out much of the snow pack up to that point in time. Thinking with continued cold clear nights the rate of faceting will accelerate in the thinner snow pack areas. Never got warm enough today to soften the melt freeze crust on the south facing aspects, breakable crust increased the difficulty of our exit. Not much to take photos of right now things are kinda stagnant right now, throwing in a pic of a little graupel\facet skiing from today

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