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Observation: Reynolds East Face

Observation Date
12/7/2017
Observer Name
J. Rowell
Region
Salt Lake » Big Cottonwood Canyon » Reynolds Pk » Reynolds East Face
Location Name or Route
Reynolds Peak East Face
Weather
Sky
Clear
Wind Direction
Southeast
Wind Speed
Light
Snow Characteristics
New Snow Depth
5"
New Snow Density
Low
Snow Surface Conditions
Powder
Faceted Loose
Red Flags
Red Flags
Poor Snowpack Structure
Red Flags Comments
Thin snow pack only 33cm deep. Poor structure, thin snowpack is only accelerating that faceting. Currently not enough of a slab to produce any collapsing/avalanching, even with the minor wind transport.
Snow Profile
Aspect
East
Elevation
9,400'
Slope Angle
37°
Started at Spruces TH and skinned up Mill D. Thinking of skiing Tom's Hill if it had enough snow on it. It didn't look like it from Dog Lake so we skied Reynolds. Shallow snow pack, hit the occasional rock/stump. With the cold temps it's probably safe to say we are moving towards faceting. Smaller surface hoar was lining the skin track in the more sheltered terrain. There was some minor wind loading on skiers right as you can see from the second picture. Skiing was better than we expected.
Today's Observed Danger Rating
Low
Tomorrows Estimated Danger Rating
Moderate