Upside- Down Snowpack

Submitted by Public on Tue, 01/29/2013 - 9:41pm
Location Name: 
Devil's Hill
Region: 
Three Sisters Area
Position: 
Public
Date and time of observation: 
Tue, 01/29/2013 - 1:30pm
Red Flags: 
Whumphing noises, shooting cracks, or collapsing
Recent loading by new snow, wind, or rain
Rapid warming
Snowpit Observations
More detailed information about the snowpack: 

 Today, we skied up the drainage towards South Sister hoping to ski at Devil's Hill. The new snow from last night (sadly) has covered the blower powder from Sunday and Monday in a heavier, denser layer at this location. This warmer, heavier layer sits on weak dry snow that was reactive in Compression Tests: CTM , both with a Sudden Collapse fracture character, down about 40 cm. This was on a W-SW facing slope at about 6200' that did not have wind loading. Some of our party went a bit higher and came back down, after they entered a steeper zone with slabbier snow and heard whumphing and collapsing.

The sky was obscured for most of the day, with moderate to strong winds above the treeline. The temperature was slightly below freezing with most of the tree branches holding their snow.

-Pete