Steamboat & Flat Tops
AvalancheKreston Rohrig · Dec 6, 2020 · Steamboat & Flat Tops
Weather
Sunny day that warmed quickly. Temps in the afternoon were creeping into the high 40s at Dry Lake TH.
Snowpack
Recent public observations have done a great job of capturing current conditions. I poked around on Rabbit Ears and found a deeper north-facing slope to dig on in hopes of assessing the remaining slab structure. Total depth was 75cm, and was mostly faceted. The top 10cm is soft and weak and has preserved a layer of buried surface hoar just below. The mid-pack slab remains supportable to skis, but boot pen goes straight to the ground. The old snow from October at the ground is turning to larger-grained depth hoar, and is mixed with some melt forms (previous warming). Overall, the snowpack is weak and getting weaker. The structure is safe for now, but won't handle a big load of snow once the snow starts up again.
Avalanche
None observed