Fun down low in powder valley

Snowpack

info · Jan 2, 2021 · Tutshi

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Quick report

Weather
cloudy
Ride Type
openTrees, mellowSlopes
Stayed Away
alpineSlopes
Riding Quality
good
Snow Conditions
windAffected, powder

Camera malfunction so no pics. Sled/ski day in the powder valley yielded some nice boondocking in the lower sheltered glades with little wind effect and plentiful holes from stuck sleds. Above 1200m we found solid wind slab (5-10cm) under 5cm of low density snow, giving variable but still ok skiing. The Dec 2 crust/facet layer was down 80cm on an east aspect at 1400m. No results on a compression test and a resistant planar failure with a shovel shear. Overall our obs were similar to the other two MIN reports from the area on Jan 2.

Weather

Avg Temp
-14
Wind Speed
windSpeedCalm
Blowing Snow
none
Sky Condition
overcast
New Snow24 Hours
5
Storm Snow Amount
5
Temperature Trend
steady
Precipitation Type
none
Precipitation24 Hours
5

Snowpack

Obs Type
point
Site Aspect
E
Test Fracture
resistant
Site Elevation
1400
Ski Penetration
5
Test Initiation
none
Foot Penetration
5
Test Failure Depth
80
Site Elevation Band
tln
Surface Conditions
newSnow, variable
Test Failure Layer Crystal Types
facets

Dec 2 facet/crust down 80cm at 1390m on a 30 degree east aspect. CTNx1 and shovel shears yielded a resistant planar fracture.