October 20
Area:
Upper BCC
Location:
Brighton to Catherine's- Sunset Peak.
Elevations, slope angles and aspects:
8900'-10'400'. Angles to 40°. North and east aspects.
Avalanche activity was limited to isolated rollers and pt releases from yesterday's warm-up.
Sunset main face was skied from near the saddle and the Dog Lake chute skied on the return to Brighton.
Snow surface and condition:
4'' of damp dense snow was found at the base of the Crest lift, with a skiff of new. The new increased to a coupla inches and the base remained damp but, support improved with ascent.to around 10k. Damp snow turned to dense settled above that elevation.
Weather:
Moderate temperatures. Winds increase from the north as elevation increased, gusting into the 20mph+ range at upper elevations. Spits and sputters of snow adding up to and inch or two. Partial clearing in the afternoon, with slightly deceased wind.
Snow pit:
Evaluation:
Yesterday's mild and warm weather solidified the recent storm snow. Cooler temperatures should further consolidate and seize it up, at least below 10'000'. Snow pit testing indicated a weakness at the old surface, with ski cuts producing some surface sluffing on angles over 35°. Continued wind and more snow would probably add to the instability at upper elevations. There is some potential for slab formation running at that weakness and isolated potential exists for those to step down to the old mf crust.