| Recent Avalanches? | Yes |
| Collapsing (Whumphing)? | No |
| Cracking (Shooting cracks)? | No |
Observation: Chugach State Park
Location: Peak 3.5
Skinned up Peak 3 gully and over to top of Peak 3.5 along ridge at 4000′ elevation band.
Obvious signs of instability
Observer Comments
Active wind loading by 7 pm on S aspects. Recent looking crown traveling base of cliff band around entire cirque above hidden lake area visible from our location: HS-AU(AM? due to snowmachine highway leading to hidden lake)-R3-D2+ (estimate from our vantage point).
Weather
Clear, temps in upper single digits. Wind started out light from the North and picked up 15 mph by 7pm.
Snow surface
Variable conditions. Wind deposited snow over hard, supportable wind crusts. On S and E aspects, a 1/8" sun crust was present above ~3000'.
Snowpack
We dug one pit on the Peak 3.5 gully (where map marker is placed). Elevation of 4000'. HS 85cm. West aspect. 27 degree slope. Pit location was near ridgetop. See pit profile below. Results: ECTP14 SP down 35cm on laid-over buried surface hoar. Also ECTP24 SC down 70cm in the middle of the basal facet/depth hoar interval.
Pit Profile
Hidden Lake avalanche
Depth Hoar - 2nd weak/failure layer in pit test
consistent layer of soft wind transported snow below ridgeline on leeward aspects sitting on stout wind crust