Observation: Hatcher Pass

Location: Micro Dot

Date:
Observer:
Dylan Lenzie
Route & General Observations

Skinned up Micro Dot via regular skin track path. Ski’d a few runs assessing snow conditions working our way up to the top ridge line of Micro Dot and finally dropping the south aspect.

Red Flags
Red flags are simple visual clues that are a sign of potential avalanche danger. Please record any sign of red flags below.
Obvious signs of instability
Recent Avalanches?Yes
Collapsing (Whumphing)?Yes
Cracking (Shooting cracks)?No
Observer Comments

3rd and 4th person of skin group heard two large whumphs with no signs of cracking.
Some storm shedding and point releases near cliffs and rock areas.

Weather & Snow Characteristics
Please provide details to help us determine the weather and snowpack during the time this observation took place.
Weather

24 degrees in Independence Mine parking lot at 9am.
5-10mph winds.
Light snow flurries.
Cloud cover giving way to clear skies around 11am.
Storm snow depth in parking lot of 10-12”.

Snow surface

New storm snow over night was of variable depth throughout our skin. Some spots showed 4-6 inches over hard wind slabs, while other areas showed over 12 inches of new snow from wind loading. Ridge line showed wind scouring and hard wind crusts.

Snowpack

Dug pit on Micro Dot south aspect at 4500 feet.
Snow Depth: 105cm
60cm 4F : New storm snow
10cm F
20cm 1F
15cm F : Weak facets at ground level.

Extended column test was conducted.
ECTN 6
Inconsistent broken snow at 25cm from surface in the new storm snow.
ECTP 12
Propagation was clear between the 15cm of facets at the ground and the 20cm of finger hard snow.

Photos & Video
Please upload photos below. Maximum of 5 megabytes per image. Click here for help on resizing images. If you are having trouble uploading please email images separately to staff.

Pit  

Micro Dot ridge  

Getting pitted on South aspect