Route
Sunburst up to 3,300’
Weather
Mild temps – 41 @ 1,000’ at 10am, 37 F @ 1,000’ @ 2pm
Light to moderate winds out of the East 5-15 mph
Rain/Snow Line around 2,500’ dropping to ~2,000’ in the afternoon
Rain & snow showers < 2” snow accumulation above 2,500’
Overcast to fully obscured skies
Obvious Signs Of Instability
Recent Avalanches-observed some newer debris on Seattle Ridge (see photo) – poor
visibility made for uncertainty with new av. activity on Turnagain Pass
Shooting Cracks-NO
Collapsing-NO
Surface Obs
1,000-1,500’-mainly snow free with some patches of 2” of old snow
1,500-2,000’-4-8” total snow depth, isothermal snow
2,000-2,500’-8-16” total snow depth, isothermal snow, top 2” saturated from rain
with large melt freeze grains below. “Trap Door” travel conditions
2,500-3,300’-dense new snow 6-12”, rollerballs from 1-13 slightly covered by new
snow
Snow Below the Surface
Pits at 2,800’ and 3,300’ along the W ridge of Sunburst showed a complex
snowpack. Wet layers interspersed with dry snow were found at 2,800’. Test
results were unremarkable at this elevation.
At the 3,300’ pit we found 2 weak layers, 30cm and 50 cm down that were reactive
and showed little to no propagation. Testing of the Buried Surface hoar layer
at this location showed propagation potential. Impacting this layer (BSH) is
very difficult at this time but it is a layer that we will continue to keep an
eye on.
Pit @ 3,300’, WSW, 30 deg slope
HS=125
ECTN 14 x 3, 30 cm down on hardness change
ECTN 24, 25, 50 cm down on hardness change below crust
ECTP 21, 50 cm down
PST 40/100 End 55 cm down on buried surface hoar (6mm)
