Observation: Gold Hill

Observation Date
1/6/2024
Observer Name
Ted Scroggin
Region
Uintas » Gold Hill
Location Name or Route
Gold Hill
Weather
Sky
Broken
Wind Direction
Southwest
Wind Speed
Light
Weather Comments
Felt like a January day in Wyoming with single digit temperatures and the wind chill putting it below zero. Not quite as cold at the trailhead this morning, but it stayed on the chilly side throughout the day. The winds were light on the ridge lines from the southwest and the skies were partly sunny.
Snow Characteristics
New Snow Depth
8"
New Snow Density
Low
Snow Surface Conditions
Powder
Snow Characteristics Comments
Cold low density snow with upwards of 10+ inches around the Gold Hill area. Yesterday morning there was 4" at the trailhead and another 4-5" this morning. Conditions are slowly improving with each passing storm, but still lots of hazards to watch out for.
Red Flags
Red Flags
Poor Snowpack Structure
Red Flags Comments
Not a lot of avalanche activity that I observed today, what I did see was sluffing of the new snow as it gouged into the old weak snow surface. I would think with the forecasted stormy weather this week the weak layers will become quite active.
Avalanche Problem #1
Problem
Persistent Weak Layer
Trend
Increasing Danger
Problem #1 Comments
Not enough new snow and wind to really get things going, but that should change with more storms on the way.
Comments
This snow pit in the Gold Hill area was mostly weak snow on top of weak snow and would think with some denser snow and wind this place could see natural avalanches.
The cold low density storm snow easily sluffed on steeper slopes and dug into the old weak snow surface. Once these got going they picked up a little steam and even had their own small powder cloud.
This ridge line typically gets some good cornices, but the winds have been very light recently.
Suprisingly quiet today with very few riders out and about, maybe folks are waiting for more snow which should happen this week?
Today's Observed Danger Rating
Moderate
Tomorrows Estimated Danger Rating
Considerable
Coordinates