April 10
Porter
Elevations, slope angles and aspects:
6200-10200', angles over 35°, north, east and west aspects.
Avalanche activity:
Alexander Basin east facing. Two separate slides observed in upper Alexander, both the result of wind loaded cornice falls. Some sluffing and shallow soft slabs observed in West Porter and
main Porter.
Slopes skied:
Cabin run, Gobbler's main face and lower Paradise.
Snow conditions:
4" at the trail head increased to about 10" (6" overnight) at upper elevations. Much of the most recent snow was graupel,
pooling on low angled terrain. The last snow fell as rimed stellars.
A couple of snowflakes seen with wind riming.
Dense snow kept the skis near the surface for consistent skiing.
Several collapses were felt at mid elevations on shady aspects. They became frequent on a northeast facing ascent.
Snow pit results:
The ease of shear and quality led to backing off further ascent.
Weather:
Overcast, with occasional partly cloudy patches. Winds from the northwest, gusting to around 20 mph along the ridge. Cool temperatures.
Evaluation:
Slides were limited to new snow and mostly on ene facing aspects, the result of continued wind. Would expect some active wind drifts on those aspects. The collapsing and easy shear indicate a mid elevation instability that, while currently isolated, is likely to activate and become more widespread, with the first forecasted warm up of the year.
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