37F and drizzly-mist in the parking lot at 900ft. Cloud level was well below the summits, visibility was bad.
Winds 10-25mph from NNE while I was on W or NW aspects. Wind dropped to 0-5mph when I wrapped to a SW aspect. (Sunburst weather station measured 30-50+ mph from the ENE during the time I was out).
Rain turned "frozen precip" at 1300ft, and something resembling snow at 1500ft. But, I don't think the air temperature ever dropped below freezing during my tour.
Observation: Turnagain
Location: Cornbiscuit
Quick midday dog walk up to alder line on Cornbiscuit. I wanted to see how the recent snow, wind, and warm temps have affected the upper snowpack.
I was surprised by how much wind transport was happening despite the snow being so sticky. Lots of snow blowing across the surface. I could see small new cornices actively forming on terrain features as I skinned by. I tested one of these cornices, it broke with just one ski step, in big cohesive chunks.
If there was any recent natural avalanche activity I wasn’t able to see it through the thick clouds.
Weather
Snow surface
wet and wind blown
Snowpack
I dug a pit at 2000ft on a West aspect, 30deg slope.
Height of snow 280cm, pit depth 100cm.
CT16 RP and ECTN15 at a density change 50cm down.
Using a shovel pry, the top 5cm of snow easily sheared on a plane.
Pit wall
slight collapse at 15 during my ECT (no propagation). By 30 hits the shovel had compressed through the 4F section of snow to the density change 50cm down.
The top 5cm showed easy planar shearing. I was surprised I did not see any shooting cracks or other activity from this layer while skinning and skiing.
I kicked a few newly formed cornices along the skin track. They all broke very easily, in large cohesive chunks.
wet sticky snow falling, but it still managed to blow around, form cornices, and was starting to form 5cm thick slabs Prevailing wind direction indicated by dog butt.