| Recent Avalanches? | Yes |
| Collapsing (Whumphing)? | No |
| Cracking (Shooting cracks)? | No |
Observation: Turnagain
Location: Tincan
Quick tour up to treeline on Tincan to get eyes on the aftermath of the storm. Visibility was limited, but in a few ‘clear’ spells I saw debris from some small mid-storm dry loose avalanches on CFR, and possibly some bigger storm slabs on Pyramid and the south side of 4940. I dug a pit at 2300′ on a north aspect and found about 4′ settled storm snow with no major concerns stability-wise. The lingering question is still how the old/new snow interface is behaving in the alpine. At 2300′ I just barely got up to a point where there was some snow on the ground prior to this recent storm, but I would not say this pit is representive of the alpine snowpack.
** Parking is super limited right now. As of this afternoon, the only open parking area on the pass was the Tincan lot, which had room for about 10 vehicles.
Obvious signs of instability
Observer Comments
Visibility was limited, but there were several debris piles from small mid-storm loose snow avalanches.
Weather
Cloudy and calm, with intermittent low-level clouds sometimes limiting visibility to a few hundred yards.
Snow surface
So much new snow. Stepping off the skin track, you could sink up to your waist in new snow. Bordering on wallowing at times, but made for good skiing.
Snowpack
The new snow had settled to 3-4' deep, all the way down to the parking lot. The only layer of interest in the snowpack was a mid-storm crust layer that likely came from a period of drizzle near the end of the storm, now buried 1-2' deep. No unstable test results in the pit (ECTX), and the whole column popped off at the ground when I pried it out of the pit with a shovel. See attached photos for more detailed pit info.
This is only my first pit of the season, so info is super limited. But this is an encouraging first look! The big question remains- what does that storm interface look like in the alpine?
The aftermath of this week's storm is impressive. The only real discernable layer in the snowpack is that brittle crust from the middle of the storm. 11.10.2023
Looking across the pass towards Seattle Ridge. 11.10.2023
The view north with CFR in the middle ground. 11.10.2023
Detailed snowpit profile. 11.10.2023
Sunburst parking is looking a bit challenging right now. As of this afternoon, the only open parking area on the pass was the Tincan lot, which had room for about 10 vehicles. 11.10.2023
Sometimes the Forest Service is able to help with plowing the DOT lot early in the season, but with all of the new snow that might be closed for business. 11.10.2023