November 11
Beartrap-Dutches Draw
Elevations, slope angles and aspects
7500-10k, angles over 35°, all aspects.
Snow conditions
Several inches of recent snow mixed with dirt and mud to about 9k in Beartrap.
Above that elevation, on the shady side, the recent snow was above a crust, lingering from storms in October.
Surface hoar was viewed in mid elevation meadows in the a.m. It melted during the day from the mild day time temperatures.
There was also evidence of faceting both near the surface and at the interface with the crust.
Picking up a handfull and squeezing revealed some dampness as snowballs could be formed.
On the descent, some of lower elevation snow had melted to dirt.
Weather
Partly cloudy skies, mild temperatures with wind from the south along the ridge.
Snow pit
Evaluation
Snow was stable.
Weather guessers are suggesting storm totals with over an inch of water weight by Monday so...
I'd expect most instabilities to be dependent on bond between new and old snow layering.
New snow slides will likely step down and run on the stout crust.
Could see localized collapse failure in the area from lingering near surface faceting.
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