Observation: Little Water

Observation Date
12/12/2022
Observer Name
Antenucci, Champion, Breen
Region
Salt Lake » Big Cottonwood Canyon » Mill D North » Little Water
Location Name or Route
Little Water Uptrack
Weather
Sky
Overcast
Precipitation
Moderate Snowfall
Wind Direction
West
Wind Speed
Light
Weather Comments
Snowfall was between S-1 and S1 throughout the day, with more snowfall occurring later into the afternoon.
Snow Characteristics
New Snow Depth
12"
New Snow Density
Low
Snow Surface Conditions
Powder
Snow Characteristics Comments
Great riding conditions in low angle terrain.
Red Flags
Red Flags
Recent Avalanches
Heavy Snowfall
Collapsing
Poor Snowpack Structure
Red Flags Comments
We got a couple of whumps off our skin track early in our tour.
Avalanche Problem #1
Problem
Persistent Weak Layer
Trend
Increasing Danger
Problem #1 Comments
While our ECTN14 doesn't show any propagation, the snow pack has weak structure and there were several avalanches reported from today. We got several collapses off our skin track and with more snow and water on the way I would expect the persistent weak layer to remain reactive.
Avalanche Problem #2
Problem
New Snow
Trend
Increasing Danger
Problem #2 Comments
There was a lot of new snow when we started the day and by the end of the day our tracks were already being refilled. In our pit our ECTN14 failed on a thin layer of graupel that likely fell at the beginning of this storm. With all this new snow, there is a lot more snow to be transported and while we didn't observe a lot of wind transport, there were several areas where we traveled on scoured wind board. Upper elevation southwesterly's had significantly less snow, than mid elevation westerly's due to the intense wind last week, and into the weekend. As well, lingering stout slabs of wind drifted snow are now camouflaged by all the new snow, and could be harder to identify.
Snow Profile
Aspect
Northwest
Elevation
9,100'
Slope Angle
23°
Today's Observed Danger Rating
High
Tomorrows Estimated Danger Rating
High
Coordinates