Whiteout and low visibility for most of the tour, snowing about a cm/hour, no wind with light gusts from the SE
Observation: Chugach State Park
Location: Falls Creek
Standard track up Falls Creek. We walked in ski boots for the first ~1/4 mile of the trail before we could find consistent snow to skin on. Expect some Devil’s Club and willow dodging on your descent.
Weather
Snow surface
At lower elevations, there was ~2"-5" of new snow. When we got back in the main Falls Creek Bowl there was up to ~1" of fresh snow.
Snowpack
The snowpack was significantly different than what we've been seeing in the majority of the Chugach State Park.
There was ~20 cm of newer snow on a melt-freeze crust. We got ECTP4 on the thin layer of facets underneath the new snow and on the melt-freeze crust. Under that, we found more facets with a melt-freeze crust roughly halfway through the snowpack.
Similar to our snowpit on Peak 4- this snowpit was also looking "wintery" (meaning it was not rounding and had a lot of facet layers).
Old debris. Photo: 4.4.24
Alex on top of a funky wind feature. Photo: 4.4.24
More old debris piles. Photo: 4.4.24
More old debris. Photo: 4.4.24
Snowpack structure. Photo: 4.4.24
Snowpilot