Observation: White Pine

We found the wind-drifted snow problem to be specific to terrain above 9,500 feet. These thick wind drifts were 2–3 feet deep and consisted of a mix of hard and soft slabs. Evidence of long-running avalanches from yesterday was visible on north and east-facing terrain; however, today the snow appeared to be holding together. While traveling across a wind-loaded NE test slope, cracking was limited, but we did experience a collapse. This made it hard to trust how “glued on” these slabs were, so we avoided steep wind-loaded terrain.