10:15 am Overcast, light winds, snow flurries
11:15 am broken skies, moderate winds at ridgetops, no precip
1:00 pm overcast, light winds, snow flurries
Observation: Chugach State Park
Location: Peak Three
Standard up track to Peak Three to assess conditions. We were primarily focused on looking at persistent slab problems at higher elevations and seeing how the recent winds are affecting the snowpack.
Weather
Snow surface
The snow surface was wind-affected with both scoured and wind-loaded areas with a thin layer (less than one inch) of snow from the snow flurries on our tour.
Snowpack
Snow depths ranged greatly on our tour. We observed bare ground to over 4 feet (+120cm) in wind-deposited locations.
Location: Peak Three
Elevation: Two pits were dug at 3,000'
Aspects: West
Test Results: We observed propagation (showing poor stability) on the facet layer between the melt-freeze crust and the wind slab roughly 40cm down from the snow surface (ECTP10 in one pit and ECTP14 in the other).
Small wind pocket triggered from skin track
1st pit dug (less deep snow, closer to the edge of the gully)
2nd pit dug (same aspect and elevation, deeper snow further from the edge of the gully)
Skin track up to Peak Three
Face of Peak Three
Test results
Spacial varibility, skinning on grass