| Recent Avalanches? | Yes |
| Collapsing (Whumphing)? | No |
| Cracking (Shooting cracks)? | No |
Observation: Portage / Placer
Location: Squirrel Flats
Placer river valley to North access to Squirrel Flats. Spent some time at the Spencer Bench Cabin repairing stove pipe and digging access to the outhouse. More snow than I’ve ever seen at the Cabin!
Obvious signs of instability
Observer Comments
One of our party triggered a small slab (~100' wide) that slumped downhill about 20'. Slab was ~16" deep and ran on the 1/28 ;ayer of buried surface hoar.
Weather
A couple inches of new snow from pervious 48 hrs. Winds were calm everywhere we were today. Though did notice active flagging late in the day on the high peaks looking south toward Grandview and Bench Peak. Temp was 17F at the highway and warmer at elevation.
Fog layer lowered and hung at about 2400' thru most of the afternoon. Grey day below, blue sky and sunshine above!
Snow surface
Widespread 2-3mm surface hoar 2,000' and above deposited on fist hard surface. Since Sunday (last I was up here), still very little wind effect in this zone.
Snowpack
The top 24" has settled a little since Sunday but there still isn't much of a (widespread) slab to speak of above the 1/28 buried surface hoar.
Dug a pit at 3400' on a west aspect. 27 degree slope. CT18, ECTP21 on buried surface hoar 40cm down. First hard above the bsh. 4F then 1F below in the top 100cm of snowpack.
Continued series of taps on column below bsh with no results below bsh layer.
We did find the ground at this location. HS = 380cm (12.5')
A thin white line...... buried surface hoar ~16" deep.
bsh backlight
1-3mm BSH grains
Density profile
Comet peak, west facing.
Sluggish slab initiated by high mark above existing sled track. ~100' wide. Ran 20'. 1/28 BSH.