Observation: North Fork Ogden River

Observation Date

3/30/2019

Observer Name

Wilson, Hardesty

Region

Ogden » North Fork Ogden River

Location Name or Route

North Fork

Weather

Weather Comments

Temps in the high 30's. Beautiful clouds, but mostly sunny on our tour. Calm winds, no snow transport.

Snow Characteristics

Snow Characteristics Comments

Snow surface will only be dry on high northerlies, everything else damp or wet in the heat, and crusted by the time we exited at 6:30.

Low elevation was a trenching mess; wet snow, a small band of dry-becoming-saturated new snow, and then a thick serving of large wet melt forms below.

Avalanche Problem #1

Problem

Wet Snow

Trend

Same

Problem #1 Comments

Small loose wet avalanches on low elevation SE through E through NE facing slopes.

Bigger debris piles from higher elevation southerlies, especially below rock bands. (photo below)

One wet loose triggered a small slab (photo below).

Tomorrow should be a few degrees warmer, and perhaps even sunnier than today. Expecting a decent refreeze tonight. Still, melt freeze forms below the new snow were wet and will remain insulated; wet activity could gouge down into these unconsolidated grains.

Avalanche Problem #2

Problem

Persistent Weak Layer

Trend

Same

Problem #2 Comments

A week ago on Cutler Ridge we had several large collapses, and today in similar terrain we had none.

Can't say goodbye to persistent weak layers yet, however. Digging a north-facing pit at 7,850', I sheared off a beautiful layer of buried surface hoar. The layer is visible as a "thin grey line" 60cm down, and propagated a fracture with taps from the shoulder. It was hard to trigger under a very stout crust, but its presence and propagation potential kept us off the nicer skiing on the protected northerly slopes. We railroaded instead down a ridge that Drew promised was "good skiing for good skiers", but I'll never know.

Snow Profile

Aspect

North

Elevation

7,900'

Slope Angle

21°