Observation: Cutler Ridge

Observation Date
12/12/2019
Observer Name
Derek DeBruin
Region
Ogden » Ben Lomond » Cutler Ridge
Location Name or Route
Ben Lomond, Cutler Ridge
Weather
Sky
Overcast
Precipitation
Moderate Snowfall
Wind Direction
Southwest
Wind Speed
Light
Weather Comments
Warm start to this system bodes well, and temps were hovering around freezing this morning at the trailhead. Rain in the valley on the drive readily transitioned to dense snow around the 5200ft mark. Winds from the west/southwest were light and gusting to moderate at lower elevations, notably windy even around 6500ft, about 1000ft lower than where they typically start to pick up on Cutler. Visibility was fairly limited given the consistent S1-S2 precip rate on the quick tour this morning, but we did see some saltation wind transport, but no huge plume at low/mid elevation.
Snow Characteristics
New Snow Depth
4"
New Snow Density
Medium
Snow Surface Conditions
Dense Loose
Snow Characteristics Comments
New snow was falling in earnest, much to the appreciation of me and my partner. Rimed forms were coming down fairly dense and creamy, with the 10cm of accumulation by 0830 bonding well and filling in the bumps nicely in the old snow. The ski out was quite pleasant. This new snow sits atop old settled snowpack of about 45 to 60cm depth in the lower elevations. The right side up snowpack is capped by 1 to 5cm of crust with the new snow on top. The new snow seems to be bonding well to the underlying crusty surface. A couple 35+ degree test slopes showed good bonding on no long running sluffs (at least for the time being). Given the forecast for this storm, the accumulation down low, and the winds we observed at low/mid elevations, I'd be concerned about our basal facets up high and how reactive they might become with this new load.
Today's Observed Danger Rating
Considerable
Tomorrows Estimated Danger Rating
Considerable