Date of Observation: 11/25/2022
Name: Zach Guy
Zone: Northwest Mountains
Route Description: Anthracite Mountain Resort, northerly and east aspects to 11,200′.
Observed avalanche activity: Yes
Avalanches: Triggered a few shallow sluffs in East Bowl. They’re still quite small and not gouging through the whole snowpack like we’ve seen in previous seasons this time of year.
Weather: Clear, mild, calm.
Snowpack: Documenting weak layers on the shady aspects in advance of a pattern change next week. In short, it’s shallow and weak. See profiles. The snow surface is very weak below treeline (F-) and will struggle to hold any kind of load. It’s faceted throughout, generally 1-1.5mm here. Sluffs are entraining the top 6″ or so, but would probably gouge deeper once they gained enough mass. In more wind-affected terrain NTL, the snowpack is more variable and surfaces are a stronger mix of wind crusts and old wind drifts. However, there’s plenty of weak, faceted snow below these harder layers. In previously wind-eroded areas, those facets are larger and more developed than below treeline.
-
- Wind exposed slopes characterized by harder surface layers with faceted snow below
-
- Wind protected slopes are weak and faceted throughout.
-
- Photo of weak snow BTL
-
- The snow surface below treeline is very weak facets. 1mm grid
-
- Skier triggered facet sluffs in East Bowl.
-
- Melting is destroying weak layers on sunny aspects.
-
- Snow coverage, S/SE facing terrain in the Ruby Range
-
- Snow coverage, S/SE facing terrain of Scarp Ridge.
