Elk Basin Pre-storm

Date of Observation: 11/23/2021
Name: Eric Roberts

Zone: Northwest Mountains
Route Description: 11:00-14:20
Toured up Elk Creek to ridgeline of Elk Basin to assess coverage and instability before storm moves in.Sky cover deteriorated and winds picked up around 12:30 with light precipitation moving in from the NW. No test pits were done, and I skied back on the skin track with some fresh turns.

Observed avalanche activity: No
Avalanches:
Weather: SCT->BKN->OVC by 12:30pm
Light to Moderate NNW winds increasing to consistent moderate SW winds with sporadic strong gusts.
36°F @ 9,400′
31°F @ 11,000′
S-1@13:00, S1 @13:30 (12,000′)
No riming observed
Snowpack: Overall, the snowpack is inconsistent and terrain/aspect dependent which has been the trend. No tests were conducted but snowpack in sheltered and exposed terrain shows poor structure.
Most wind sheltered areas do not have a slab component with unsupportive and cohesionless facets making up the bulk of the snowpack.
As the winds picked up, active transport was visible with plenty of low-density snow available for this storm to throw around.
The surface hoar observed from 9,800′-11,500′ will be tomorrows potential weak layer if there is enough accumulation from this pulse.
Where surface hoar isn’t present, 1-4″ of fresh or wind stiffened snow exists over a 1-2cm MFcr 10,000′ and up.