Observation: Park City Ridgeline

Observation Date
12/1/2020
Observer Name
Grainger
Region
Salt Lake » Park City Ridgeline
Location Name or Route
PC Ridgeline
Weather
Wind Direction
North
Wind Speed
Light
Weather Comments
Clear with consistent light, gusting moderate, NNW Winds. The strong wind from last night was evident in sculpted, windslabbed ridgetop snow. These slabs all seemed welded in and non-reactive. Wind dissipated through morning.
Snow Characteristics
New Snow Depth
1"
New Snow Density
Low
Snow Surface Conditions
Faceted Loose
Wind Crust
Melt-Freeze Crust
Snow Characteristics Comments
Traveled from Empire Pass area to Murdock. Generally along the PC Ridgeline:
-Faceting is occurring in all snow that is not a crust. Snowpack height is less than 60cm even on high protected slopes and the night temps are providing all of November's snow a faceting temperature gradient.
-While areas of the upper Cottonwoods still hold somewhat weak, rightside-up snowpacks, much of the N through E of this area is more faceted throughout. Thinner HS has slopes that weren't wind-slabbed Monday night faceting to the ground ("Sandboxing" colloquially). Full ski penetration on steeper pitches, just tip-toeing and hoping for soft shrubs underneath....
-The mid-Nov thermal crust is present but deteriorating on all but high northerly slopes. I imagine this fully deteriorates soon with current weather.
-Southerly slopes continue to have their surfaces heated and cooled enhancing the already stout M/F crust. Very thin, discontinuous snowpack on mid and lower elevations and all solar aspects are a layercake of crusts and further-weakening facets.
Red Flags
Red Flags
Poor Snowpack Structure
Red Flags Comments
Aside from Low and South, things don't look good for future loads. Best will be to get a good look at the coverage and continuity of this trash heap snowpack in the days preceding our next snow.
Comments
Deeper layers that looked strong a couple weeks ago are faceting and weak.
The most interesting example of the deteriorating mid-November crust I could find was ~9000' E-facing and was still 1F. Snow below and above had weakened significantly.
Today's Observed Danger Rating
Low
Tomorrows Estimated Danger Rating
Low
Coordinates