Steamboat & Flat Tops

Snowpack

Brian Lazar · Jan 8, 2011 · Steamboat & Flat Tops

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Weather

warm, overcast, and humid. No precip, but riming was light riming occurring on all features including the snowpack surface

Snowpack

Deep snowpack. 3+ meters of snow in the Buffalo Pass area, 2-2.5 meters in Fish Creek, and 2+ meters on Rabbit Ears. Two principle layers of interest in the upper 1m of the snowpack. First, widespread SH about 2 feet deep. Tests indicate this layers is reactive in many areas, but only soft F snow sits on top. Next is a crust-fact combo about 90-100 cm. Pronounced facets on underside of crust. Not showing signs of being reactive when tested in CT and ECTs on S-SE aspects on Buffalo Pass around 10,300 ft. Similar results on N aspects at 9500 ft on Rabbit ears.