Observation: Turnagain

Location: Sunburst

Date:
Observer:
Route & General Observations

Early evening up Sunburst to ~3000′; down westerly aspect to parking lot.

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)?No
Cracking (Shooting cracks)?No
Observer Comments

Two small slabs observed on Tincan southerly aspects; one in Hippy bowl as already reported, and one likely a natural below Tincan Proper, as photographed below. No trigger was apparent in the slide below Proper, and both looked relatively new.

Very small skier triggered loose snow avalanches on Magnum road aspect.

Glide cracks present on the Tincan Library and Seattle Ridge.

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

Clear, with occasional light winds from the Southwest. Temps in the 20s, with strong solar input.

Snow surface

Surface hoar was present along the entire route, 3-6mm down low and 2-4mm at the top of the route.

Generally 8-12" of soft snow over a hard base, with some areas of 16"+ inches of soft snow (a combination of snow from this weekend and faceted snow from before the storm) over the hard base.

Previous solar input had left a 1cm melt freeze crust on moderate angle, due south aspects along the route. Any SW or WSW aspect with an angle above 15 degrees had slight melting observed on the surface by sundown, with a denser moist layer of snow present on the surface. This slight melting was also observed on steeper West aspects as well. Flat terrain was generally dry, even at sundown.

Photos & Video
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