Steamboat & Flat Tops

Avalanche

Jason Konigsberg, Mike Cooperstein · Jan 11, 2025 · Steamboat & Flat Tops

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Weather

30 cm of new snow, snowing S2 at times, less snow to the west

Snowpack

We dug on north through east-facing slopes between 9k and 10k feet between California Park and Meaden Peak to the east. We found a snowpack that averaged around 130 cm, 30 cm of that being new snow. Surface hoar and/or weak faceted crystals were buried 60 to 80 cm from the surface. We got mostly hard or no propagating results on this layer. In one snowpit, we got a more exciting ECTP19 on surface hoar, buried 80 cm down, on a northeast-facing slope, but we could not replicate these results. The total snow depth in and around California Park was between 60 to 80 cm. We could stay on top with our sleds with momentum, but when we stopped, we would sometimes sink to the ground.

Avalanche

None observed but it was hard to see more than a few feet in front of our sleds.