Wasatch Conditions 09-10

Yup, skiing was indeed great. Skied a north-facing shot back in the Desolation/Powder Park vicinity. Buddy ski cut the top and got a sluff to run about 100 feet. I ski cut just below his cut where it was a bit more convex (and with 50 more lbs on me) and got it to fracture. It was a soft slab, 8-12 inches deep, 30-40 feet wide, and ran slowly about 200 feet. Upper part of the slope was about 38 degrees. Broke on our good old friend surface hoar as usual.

Prior to that, got some shooting cracks in the top layer while traversing an open slope - also north facing, but only 25-30 degrees. Pit in the area was super solid. Wailed on it and didn't get much movement. The difference was the middle of the traverse was through a rocky section.

Definitely some activity out there, but it was easily manageable. At least in our case.

considerable difference in snow pack on N. facing aspects between the two/three canyons (likely stating the obvious for most).

up on Gobbler ridgeline yesterday, gorgeous and quiet day with pockets of sun followed by low density clouds that kept the snow fluffy. Decided against dropping down into Mill Creek on a steeper aspect, approx. 35-40 degrees due north, despite how schweet it looked. Two pits confirmed failures to the ground at around CT12, collapsing on the sugar that is still about a foot and half in depth, running right to the ground. Extremely clean break on columns a little over 7ft tall, that were well consolidated down to the faceted snow and fkna heavy.

As opposed to LCC, where i've noticed the weak ground layers from early season on similar aspects and elevations to be at most 3-4 inches deep and continuing to sinter. thoughts on why so drastically different? assuming snow has just fallen more consistently in LCC? will this heal and make for a green light spring?

All in all happy to ski out down the southern face alive, fast and surfy 5 inches on top of firm refreeze, mcconkey turned most of the way down chasing my sluff.

side note; any good stretches for IT Band that aren't the obvious ones on the oracle (Google)?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by whapworth

side note; any good stretches for IT Band that aren't the obvious ones on the oracle (Google)?

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do another search on google for "piriformis stretch". that should give you a few extra results that are easy to modify to hit the IT a little better. stretching that muscle has always helped my IT band.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by AltaPowderDaze

do another search on google for "piriformis stretch". that should give you a few extra results that are easy to modify to hit the IT a little better. stretching that muscle has always helped my IT band.

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appreciated!!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Sh4ft

As an admitted avy jong, and my first foray into armchair QB'ing this seems to defy safe travel protocol:

http://utahavalanchecenter.org/files...IMG_0279_0.JPG

Slope above red pine...does this indicate confidence in snowpack analysis? No instabilities detected? I don't mean to point any fingers, but would like to hear any rationale for what is depicted in the photo.

From this report:
http://utahavalanchecenter.org/obser...d_pine_2202010

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That's heli-skiing. Only heli skiers go flip floppin' 8 at a time.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by whapworth

side note; any good stretches for IT Band that aren't the obvious ones on the oracle (Google)?

---

Use one of the hard foam rollers and your bodyweight. It hurts while you're on it, but really helps loosen things up.

Stayed on mellow stuff today up by Aire. Bluebird skys with warmer temps than yestarday started to mank up the typical aspects. Found creamy pow on mid elevation east aspects. Dug one pit up past the top "chute" on a East face at apx. 8,600 and found CT 2 Q2 on the surface hoar 11 intches down and CT 23 Q2 on the ground facets. Noticed one what looked to be natural just on the north side of the Aire ridge that was about a foot deep and 60 feet wide although not traveling far. Saw Pete from Grappa on the way down who told us he came accrost a few the same size all on north aspects up by where he was skiing.

Liam making his way out of the scrub oak....
http://i791.photobucket.com/albums/y...b232010004.jpg


Me finding some pow on the way up....
http://i791.photobucket.com/albums/y...1111b/edit.jpg

Looking West..

http://i791.photobucket.com/albums/y...b232010015.jpg

Another classic Wasatch day.

The big storms keep going south, so we keep following.
http://i253.photobucket.com/albums/hh71/mdh_228/028.jpg

for springtime
http://i253.photobucket.com/albums/hh71/mdh_228/039.jpg

The view from zee top of City Creek Peak, 11,100. So much to explore in these mountains.
http://i253.photobucket.com/albums/hh71/mdh_228/029.jpg

Dropping a bomb on the east bowl of City Creek Peak
http://i253.photobucket.com/albums/h...28/cornice.jpg

http://i253.photobucket.com/albums/hh71/mdh_228/030.jpg
http://i253.photobucket.com/albums/h..._228/marko.jpg

Back down the west side. Better go switch in case any ladies are watching.
http://i253.photobucket.com/albums/h...228/switch.jpg

Puffer Lake.
http://i253.photobucket.com/albums/hh71/mdh_228/044.jpg

Elk Meadows is tracked out and the lifts ain't even open.
http://i253.photobucket.com/albums/hh71/mdh_228/046.jpg

^^^Yes, south was the place to go. Wanted to go here:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...b/IMG_1171.jpg

Steady+40mph wind and road closures kept us from skiing the lines we came for, but scrutiny of the topos yielded a good "plan B"
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...b/IMG_1141.jpg

Even sticking to comparatively sheltered terrain, one in our party pulled out this slab:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...b/IMG_1178.jpg

Salida
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...b/IMG_1168.jpg

Salida in the white room
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...b/IMG_1158.jpg

FINALLY...I’m making it to UT this weekend after a season ender last year canceled my trip...:mad:

Anyone around and willing to let an outta-towner-mag tag along for some touring this weekend? BC or SC. Would be MUCH appreciated, I'll provide the standard après beers!! Can meet pretty much anywhere sat a.m. around 9:30 and will be in town skiing thru tues.

Have full avi kit and level I in my bag, all my touring has been in CO/VT, 1st timer to the Wasatch ('bout damn time), with this year’s snowpack and lack of avi savy friends on the trip, I won’t be experimenting and will be flying solo. Can pretty much ski anything shy of mandatory 20’ airs. Not a rando racer on the up, I don’t want to hold anyone up, but should be able to hang with most on the up/down.

Thanks much in advance!
-b

edit: will have a car and can prob haul 2-3 others if needed.

eerily quiet in the heart of the pen today.

zzz didn't mind:

http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/f...g?t=1267150330

http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/f...g?t=1267150446

skied nw, e & s. new snow sluffing on the steeper nw. could def feel the crust on the s. no other major instabilities noticed. good day for sure.

Snow was fast and fluffy, and a bit sluffy especially early this morning. We noticed a few 50-foot-wide soft slabs triggered both naturally and by skiers but all looked less than a foot in deep and nearly as sluffy as they were slabby.

The sun poked out a few times and down low the new snow had turned to mank by late afternoon
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...b/IMG_1342.jpg

Up high the snow skied better
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...b/IMG_1302.jpg

figures it fucking pukes right after I leave. oh well. we got a storm last time.

My dad was in town for a few days, he went poking around White Pine yesterday and had a 2' deep, 100' wide soft slab release near him in one of the pockets west of Scottie's. He said it ran several hundred feet through trees.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by SkiBumOfVT

Does anyone know if your allowed to park a car at the White Pine trailhead before they start bombing in the morning?

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I have done that before with no consequences and plan on doing so tomorrow morning.

Ty and I broke trail under bluebird skies. Snow was soft, but above treeline we were only getting a few inches of ski penetration. It had settled considerably overnight.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...b/IMG_1386.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...b/IMG_1392.jpg

At this entrance we lopped a Gene Simmons tongue of a cornice, sending several hundred pounds of snow to the bottom but failed to trigger a slab avalanche. Upon looking over the edge we noticed a nearly buried crown line, though it was hard to guess it's age or on which weak layer it had failed.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...b/IMG_1401.jpg

Ski cutting into most north-facing side of the gully, I triggered a shallow soft slab of freshly wind-deposited snow. By late morning the wind was transporting significant amounts of storm snow, though most new deposits were F to 4F density.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...b/IMG_1403.jpg

Velvet cake skiing on the fresh debris; beyond where the cornice had rolled it was just velvet
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...b/IMG_1437.jpg

It got green-housy by lunchtime and solar aspects were cooking by mid-afternoon
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...b/IMG_1384.jpg

But north facing was good all the way down to the road
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...b/IMG_1494.jpg

i was just focused on the track in that last pic, and then i saw the skier.
nice.

Spent the last 2 days pokng around B right On slack country.
Yea under reporting and open boundries.
Thurs new snow and wind loading was easily triggered on steeper aspects.
Ski cut a 1' deep by 50' wide on back side of Clayton.
Good skiing crappy vis
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y19...bum/sfb384.jpg
Yesterday got a late start missed the action here not sure if it involved someone going for a ride appeared to be more than a cornice drop.
crown = 2'
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y19...bum/sfb401.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y19...bum/sfb399.jpg
from top
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y19...bum/sfb403.jpg
crown propagated around to low angle on side.
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y19...bum/sfb404.jpg
Another skier triggered slide off pioneer proper
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y19...bum/sfb405.jpg
Skied a couple poi laps before heading around Catherines and up sunset for a close encounter of the flying turd type
Wonder if they count seein ya when they land on top ya.
Ne facing sunset into snake creek skied great although slight crust on se aspects of gully and skin out.
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y19...bum/sfb409.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y19...bum/sfb416.jpg
Fun to watch sunset n face get hammered by some rippers.
and cool views up there
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y19...bum/sfb406.jpg

EI EI O shot
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y19...bum/sfb417.jpg
headed back up poineer for the out
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y19...bum/sfb429.jpg

Todays report:

As forecast, yesterday was an extremely wild day. I think it set a record for the number of human triggered avalanches reported to us in one day. Here is the list:

21 significant, human triggered avalanches in the backcountry

9 unintentionally triggered

7 people caught

4 partial burials including one with just his hand sticking out

What are you guys doing differently than the people setting off slides on 30 degree slopes? (Obviously the cornice drop was a good indicator, for example.)

I haven't been out in 6 weeks because of an injury so I'm confused on how the conditions really are.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by muted

Todays report:

What are you guys doing differently than the people setting off slides on 30 degree slopes? (Obviously the cornice drop was a good indicator, for example.)

I haven't been out in 6 weeks because of an injury so I'm confused on how the conditions really are.

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First of all let me say I am no avalanche expert. But I do have 25 years of BC experience in the Wasatch.

IMO, you have to know the seasonal snowpack history of each canyon, drainage and slope you are going to push the angles on. That and dig pits with the ability to discern faceted cystals and weak layers.

I drive down the road till I find some avvy poodles doing road side slope stablity testing. When they huck it and it don't slide Shizz is good
and I'm always reccoing.
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y19...bum/kes122.jpg
Or there is the "control work":rolleyes: obs
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y19...bum/kes127.jpg
Probably won't be goin here till 4/20 though
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y19...bum/kes126.jpg

Our group is too poor to buy sleds, so we skated 15 miles up the road to Bald Pass to take a look around. Nice day in the Uintas, hope to get back again soon and in the spring.
http://fritzrips.com/Gallery1/albums...n/DSCF1330.jpg

Bald Peak....the SE face of Murdock Peak down the road was looking plump, no pics. The skate 15 miles home was a lot easier.........
http://fritzrips.com/Gallery1/albums...n/DSCF1332.jpg

Some "plump" skis you got there. Do they ski a lot like your 120s? :D

Beautiful area up there. I've only been there in the summer/fall and right after the road gets opened.

BTW, I know xc poles are long, but those look ridiculous.

I'll be honest, I've been thinking of getting some xc skis again. Being an actual greencard-holding Norwegian, I feel like I need to embrace it at some point in my life. I grew out of my teenager gear that my parents bought for me years ago, but when I visited my parents xmas 2008 I borrowed my dad's stuff and had several freakishly fun days out in the backwoods on the skinnies. I want some of those Karhu Xcds for going on xc/a few turns here and there days.

Sorry for the thread drift.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by TeleThor

Some "plump" skis you got there. Do they ski a lot like your 120s? :D

BTW, I know xc poles are long, but those look ridiculous.

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Poles are 163cm long, I'm 6 foot. Yeah, the 40mm skis fucking rock at Alta. Sickness.........:)

9500 ft, north facing aspects in White Pine drainage showed great promise and sintering. Despite the avy report, we couldn't get any column to fail until CT40+, even though simple shovel-shear tests were giving us Q1-Q2-ish failures at 30cm, 45cm, and 65cm depths.

The snow got a bit heavier as the day moved along, but we didn't have many signs of instabilities, other than some minor wet sluffing. Skiing mid to upper-thirty degree slopes didn't have anything moving under us.

Great day. Meagan on the exit back to Pino Blanco
http://photos-f.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos..._5995684_n.jpg

^^^ Trackhead, let me know when you are going to traverse the uinta crest. I'd be down to tag along for the first 1/8th. There are some great objectives along the way.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by PROVO

^^^ Trackhead, let me know when you are going to traverse the uinta crest. I'd be down to tag along for the first 1/8th. There are some great objectives along the way.

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Will do....it's going to be hard to get the conditions right, but, we'll see.

Saw a bunch of could be cool pillow lines today, looked familiar.;)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by RTR

9500 ft, north facing aspects in White Pine drainage showed great promise and sintering. Despite the avy report, we couldn't get any column to fail until CT40+, even though simple shovel-shear tests were giving us Q1-Q2-ish failures at 30cm, 45cm, and 65cm depths.

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I'll second that. Hit Red Baldy in the afternoon. Moderate wind damage at the base of it but higher up was still suprisingly good.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by muted

What are you guys doing differently than the people setting off slides on 30 degree slopes? (Obviously the cornice drop was a good indicator, for example.)

I haven't been out in 6 weeks because of an injury so I'm confused on how the conditions really are.

---

As the UAC forecast points out, the backcountry is a layered patchwork of instabilities this year. Over the past two weeks nearly all of the many avalanches triggered have run on surface hoar. Because surface hoar is easily broken down by sun and wind when it's on the snow surface, some steeper sun- and wind-exposed terrain lacks that particular weak layer. That same terrain, however, is often more prone to collecting wind slabs and it doesnt take much probing around to discover that the facets at the bottom of the snowpack are lingering most everywhere.

So it's far from "green light" conditions, despite the many tracks in avalanche terrain. I think nearly every one of my ski partners have triggered multiple avalanches this year both intentionally and by accident. Experts with decades more experience than I have under my belt have gone for rides. My "Wasatch lines I'd like to ski" list has been benched, maybe for the year. Getting into terrain over 30 degrees requires more wisdom and observation than it has other years.

It is a little ironic that right now many of the popular backcountry areas known for good skiing in times of higher avy danger are dotted with crown lines while some bigger alpine terrain is getting skied without consequence. Maybe a lot of us just get lucky a lot of the time.

A step-downer from today:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...b/P1090269.jpg

Quote:

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Originally Posted by The Gnarwhale

Maybe a lot of us just get lucky a lot of the time.

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Yup, and if you don't think so, you're kidding yourself.

I've modified my lines I'd like to ski list with lines I believe I can safely ski.
Those change from day to day.
A few more obs from yesterday
Some natrural activity on the Nw kessler/argenta chutes.
the headwall snowpack felt much better than the last time we were up there.
still a bit of collapsing and instablity on sw ridge to Kessler.
another storm and evidence of this
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y19...20Slide202.jpg
great shot btw Zach
will be covered
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y19...bum/kes128.jpg


Someone skied the NE coliuar. Top turns seemed dicey as much penatration into hollow snowpack. They may have rapped in for all I know. E ramp skied great some naturl activity in gullies and slight crust on se aspects.
My athelete
PowderPondo
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y19...bum/kes143.jpg
and our spansers/wives
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y19...bum/kes133.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y19...bum/kes145.jpg
looks like fun TH
You & Lurker guy should star jumping and go for nordi combined in 2014:)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by The Gnarwhale

Getting into terrain over 30 degrees requires more wisdom and observation than it has other years.
...................
Maybe a lot of us just get lucky a lot of the time.

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I think for the most part this year it's rolling the dice if you're getting into the steeper stuff. Other then knowing what's slid and hasn't reloaded yet, etc. it's a crap shoot if you're getting into the steeper stuff this season. And there's not a lot of room for error this year too.

But the last few weeks conditions seem to sorta be a little more typical to the Wasatch - dig a pit/hasty pit on the stuff you want to ski, cut it, ski safe, etc and your probably ok. But we'll see what happens when the surface hoar gets buried deeper.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by sfotex

I think for the most part this year it's rolling the dice if you're getting into the steeper stuff. Other then knowing what's slid and hasn't reloaded yet, etc. it's a crap shoot if you're getting into the steeper stuff this season. And there's not a lot of room for error this year too.

But the last few weeks conditions seem to sorta be a little more typical to the Wasatch - read uac report take doom& gloom with a grain of salt, dig a pit/hasty pit on the stuff you want to ski, cut it, ski safe, etc and your probably ok. But we'll see what happens when the surface hoar gets buried deeper.

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420
4
me

Skied Willows up to Monitor. Could see the crown in Monitor from a few days ago, looked like it got re-wind loaded too in the lasts few days. N-NE facing was nice and creamy, the south facing stuff had a nice stout crust on it.

anyone ski high-ish elevation (say 9000+), sheltered N thru E today? looks to be a nice one tomorrow and i'd like to get away from the bird again if there's some stuff left that hasn't gotten baked.

Anyone want to message me and give me some details on some good touring locations around salt lake. Never been down there but I've been applying for jobs in Utah so I'd thought I make a trip to check it out.

I'm coming down from Oregon so somewhere with overnight parking or camping would be great or an open couch?

thanks everyone

Went up Broads to ditch the powderbird...
http://i791.photobucket.com/albums/y...ch12010003.jpg

Bluebird day with mild temps and little wind in Big Cottonwood, Liam on the up track.
http://i791.photobucket.com/albums/y...ch12010022.jpg

We got up bonkers just in time to miss out on the start of some small wet activity coming off the south east ridge. CT 12 Q1 on East aspect at apx. 9,300ft. failed around 8 intches down just under the new snow. Views off the top of bonkers...
http://i791.photobucket.com/albums/y...ch12010026.jpg

Liam laying them down on the creamy pow...
http://i791.photobucket.com/albums/y...ch12010037.jpg

Another killer day in the wasatch.
http://i791.photobucket.com/albums/y...0100482edi.jpg

Finally did some skiing in the Ogden mountains worth reporting.

On the hike up we noted multiple north facing naturals at about 8000 feet:

http://lh3.ggpht.com/_FVpaSnXTb2Q/S4...0/DSC00804.JPG

http://lh5.ggpht.com/_FVpaSnXTb2Q/S4...0/DSC00799.JPG

BL saddle:

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_FVpaSnXTb2Q/S4...0/DSC00807.JPG

Cornice:

http://lh6.ggpht.com/_FVpaSnXTb2Q/S4...0/DSC00810.JPG

Up:

http://lh5.ggpht.com/_FVpaSnXTb2Q/S4...0/IMG_2529.jpg

Almost there:

http://lh3.ggpht.com/_FVpaSnXTb2Q/S4...0/IMG_2535.jpg

Took a conservative route down BL and did not note any additional instabilities until finding a north facing natural at approximately 7000 foot elevation that failed on a layer of surface hoar about 16 inches from the surface:

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_FVpaSnXTb2Q/S4...0/IMG_2548.jpg

The slope was approx. 32 degrees and the slide did not travel far.

A few more photos:

http://lh6.ggpht.com/_FVpaSnXTb2Q/S4...0/IMG_2538.jpg

http://lh3.ggpht.com/_FVpaSnXTb2Q/S4...0/IMG_2540.jpg

http://lh3.ggpht.com/_FVpaSnXTb2Q/S4...0/IMG_2542.jpg

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_FVpaSnXTb2Q/S4...0/DSC00822.JPG

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_FVpaSnXTb2Q/S4...0/DSC00824.JPG

http://lh6.ggpht.com/_FVpaSnXTb2Q/S4...0/DSC00826.JPG

Down the Hogum 200.
http://i253.photobucket.com/albums/hh71/mdh_228/012.jpg

purdy
http://i253.photobucket.com/albums/hh71/mdh_228/016.jpg

The Sliver
http://i253.photobucket.com/albums/hh71/mdh_228/020.jpg

Snapdragon
http://i253.photobucket.com/albums/hh71/mdh_228/032.jpg
http://i253.photobucket.com/albums/hh71/mdh_228/036.jpg

Watched 2 guys hit the northwest couloir
http://i253.photobucket.com/albums/hh71/mdh_228/041.jpg

The climb into Bell
http://i253.photobucket.com/albums/hh71/mdh_228/040.jpg
http://i253.photobucket.com/albums/hh71/mdh_228/045.jpg

Dropping into Thunder Bowl
http://i253.photobucket.com/albums/hh71/mdh_228/jay.jpg
http://i253.photobucket.com/albums/h...3011504222.jpg
http://i253.photobucket.com/albums/h...h_228/jay2.jpg

Gotta love the wild ride down lower Bell
http://i253.photobucket.com/albums/h..._228/059-2.jpg


Another group got a 2' x 70' wet slab to pull out in mid Bell south facing

So I'm just looking at this thread for the first time in a while.... awesome stoke, but whats the deal? Has this turned into a TR thread?

I'm headed out to SLC on Friday morning and am getting psyched about the forecasted storm.

Quote:

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STORM TOTALS IN THE MOUNTAINS COULD RANGE BETWEEN 8 AND 16 INCHES...
WITH A FEW WEST FACING SLOPES RECEIVING GREATER AMOUNTS.

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Where's all the weather chatter??

I haven't been to LCC since I spent a season there 3 years ago and it's sad to say I've lost touch with most people. PAGING LAX!! Regardless, anyone know of a way to get some sort of Alta discount tix for Friday afternoon? Any help would be much appreciated.