December 13
Area:
Park City ridges
Location:
Willow Heights, South Monitor and No Name
Elevations, slope angles and aspects:
8’000-10’000’, angles to 45°, south, west, northwest and northeast.
Avalanche activity:
Surface sluffing No Name on angles over 40°.
No other activity.
Slopes skied:
South Monitor, No Name, Wills Hill.
Snow surface and conditions:
South facing had a firm supportable crust under a couple of inches of recent snow. Northwest and west facing are wind scoured, East and northeast have drifting near the ridges which disappears within a hundred feet of elevation loss unless cross loaded, then it extends down slope some distance. Localized and or isolated cracking around the skis in wind exposed terrain without propagation. By afternoon, warm temperatures and misting rain had manked up mid and lower elevations.
Weather:
Overcast with a flurry or two during the day. Little noticeable accumulation. Winds gusting into the 20 mph+ mainly at upper elevations and along the ridges. Misty rain in the afternoon.
Snow pits:
East-northeast facing 9’200’. Snow depth of 20”. Same sort of layering without the upper wind crust. Damp faceted snow above the mf crust. No shear testing done.
Evaluation:
Stable snow at present. The Monitors have been repeatedly pounded by winds and crust sandwiches extend well down slope. There are faceted layers between the crusts but, will require a significant load before they activate. No name has the weakest snow pack I’ve seen this winter. Would expect to see activity quickly with any significant loading.
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