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Observation: Guardsman Pass area

Observation Date
12/11/2018
Observer Name
Mark Staples
Region
Salt Lake » Big Cottonwood Canyon » Guardsman Pass area
Location Name or Route
Guardsman Pass
Weather
Weather Comments
Clear sunny skies and warm temps.
Snow Characteristics
Snow Surface Conditions
Powder
Melt-Freeze Crust
Snow Characteristics Comments
South aspects have crust. Shaded slopes have great re-crystallized powder. I don't think the snow surface has weakened enough to be a problem, but we'll see what the weather brings.
Snow Profile
Aspect
East
Elevation
9,700'
Slope Angle
22°
Comments
I didn't find anything dramatic today. Just what you'd expect. Wanted to record a snow profile and do several tests. The PST results surprised me a little. We still don't know much about how the PST relates to stability. It's not a stability test; its a propagation test. My experience with PST is that cut lengths can change slowing while stability can go up and down drastically.
Regardless, I was a little surprised the PST propagated after a 30 cm cut length. Not sure why I'm surprised. Another thing to note is that the PST shows the propagation of a crack but doesn't give as much info about initiating the crack. There is still a lot we don't know about how/why avalanches happen.
Photos below of the ECT and PST in my snowpit.
Today's Observed Danger Rating
Moderate
Tomorrows Estimated Danger Rating
Moderate
Coordinates