Date of Observation: 12/22/2021
Name: Eric Murrow
Zone: Northwest Mountains
Route Description: Snowmo to Poverty Gulch and skin up southernly terrain of Mineral Point/Augusta.
Observed avalanche activity: No
Avalanches: nothing new observed
Weather: Clear skies in the morning gave way to thin, high clouds in the afternoon. Temperatures and radiation were just strong enough to moisten surfaces on southerly aspects. Winds were generally light with a few periods with moderate gusts from the southwest.
Snowpack: I traveled on southerly facing terrain from 9600 to 12500 feet. I commonly found dry, faceted snow surfaces on slopes less than 20 degrees and thin (.5-2cm) melt/freeze crusts on steep southerlies near and above treeline. As you moved towards southeast and southwest aspects crusts became wafer-thin, or non-existent at the surface. Small facets (generally .5mm, but up to 1mm) were present below the surface crusts and occasionally above the crust (radiation recrystallization). Additionally, there is a layer of facets roughly 1 foot below the surface on southerly slopes (see profile). Below treeline crusts on steep slopes facing due south increased to around 4cm thick, but not fully supportive to skis (ugly breaker crust skiing).
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- Profile from a south slope. Surface crust/facet combo and buried facet layer will be a concern with the incoming snowy weather.
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- Wind board from an alpine, southwesterly slope with small grained facets resting above the dense wind-effected snow.
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- Serious wind erosion from a few days earlier left a raised skin track on this west-facing slope above treeline. The textured snow in this photo was surprisingly soft and would have skied ok on the way down.
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- I am certain something happened here….I’m just not sure what.
