Observation: Turnagain

Route: Traveled from 500ft-2600ft on Eddies

Weather:
Partly Cloudy with calm winds in the morning and early afternoon. Around 3pm, the winds picked up
from the East, clouds rolled in, and it began snowing lightly.
Cold temps in the low to mid teens (F)

Signs of Instability:
Recent Avalanches:
Yes, One large remotely triggered slab around 2700ft, SW aspect around 11am today. This avalanche was around 150ft across and 1-3′ deep (see photo for more details).
Also, a few small remotely slabs on the lower rolls of Eddies around 2300ft, NW aspect, from 2/15. (see crown profile)

Collapsing:
Yes, a few moderate to large collapses on NW aspects from 2000-2300ft.

Cracking
None observed

Surface Conditions:
500ft-1200ft: 10-20cm soft, surface snow on January crust. Coverage on the Iditarod Trail and creek
crossing was good.
1200ft-2600ft: 20-30cm soft storm snow (2/14) that has settled out a bit on top of more supportable,
older storm snow (2/7).

Snowpack Observations:
Consistent with previous observations, there is a layer of weak, F hard, facets on top of the January crust, ranging from 2-10cm in thickness. We observed this weak layer at elevations above 2000ft in all locations we traveled today. Approximately 60cm of snow (F-1F), from 2/7-2/14, is sitting on this weak faceted snow. This layer of facets is a concern, and has been responsible for many of the recent collapses and remotely triggered avalanches.