Observation: Guardsman Pass area

What was most notable to me was that I sought out feedback from the snowpack (cracking, collapsing) in my terrain selection similar to what another UAC Staffer found in the area 2 days prior (see their ob here) and encountered nothing similar. This to me speaks to the continued faceting of the "upper" pack (do we even have enough snow to call it that?) and the lack of a slab. This was supported by multiple test results lacking defining fracture characteristics (CTN), initiation (ECTX), and propagation (ECTN).

I found a mixed bag of surfaces, with a widespread melt-freeze crust (MFcr) from our warm up last week, varying from 2-11cm thick. The crust begins to be inconsistent at 9300' on northerly aspects, and I could not find it above 9500'. HS on these same, polar aspects ranged between 35-55cm. There was notable faceting underneath the MFcr above 9100'. Surface hoar and near surface facets could be found in pocketed, isolated areas in sheltered northerly terrain.

A big thanks to Mandy Geysler and Erika Roetman from Park City Snow Safety for letting me hop in their pit with them, compare results, and for sharing their observations and professional opinions of the snowpack.