January 9
Bowman trail, Pole canyon, Cabin Run, Alexander Basin, Gobblers Knob, Porter fork
Elevations, slope angles and aspects
6200-10400', angles approaching 40°, all aspects.
Snow conditions
4-12" new and recent snow over a crust of variable strength and thickness.
New was, for the most part, well behaved.
Tthere was evidence of sluffing during several periods of the storm with shallow debris piles and slick bed surfaces.
Ski cutting steeps would produce new snow movement
which would run some distance, lacking much punch(I know, poor vis=bad photo).
Lumpy skiing on old slide paths with lower angles smooth.
Weather
Low clouds with snow flurries all day. Short patches of partial clearing. Winds were from wnw, less than 10mph along ridges.
Evaluation
Instability was limited to surface sluffing and shallow wind drifts. Ski cuts recommended on starting zones.
Future stability will be dependent on any new snow, bonding , warming, temperature and wind.
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