Steamboat & Flat Tops
SnowpackBrian Gardel / Matt House · Dec 3, 2022 · Steamboat & Flat Tops
Weather
Sky was overcast. Winds were light with moderate gusts out of the S-SW, and temperature at 2pm was 12F and dropping.
Snowpack
Total height of snow was about 100-120cm, with deeper areas where the wind had drifted snow. Lots of evidence of previous wind loading and some active snow transport. Storm total was around 6” at Dry Lake and about 10” in the Bitch Creek area, composed of mostly rimed and wind broken crystals. We observed some cracking and collapsing as we moved through terrain and didn’t see any evidence of recent avalanches, though we didn't get eyes on a lot of steep terrain. Repeated ECT tests had propagating results in the mid-pack, approximately 50-70cm down, in a facet layer several inches above the 4-8mm Nov 5 rain crust.