Pro Field Report

Basic Information

Observation Details

Observation Date:
March 27, 2021
Submitted:
March 27, 2021
Observer:
Chris Lundy
Zone or Region:
Banner Summit
Location:
Lola Creek (and glassing N Sawtooths) (6500-8800', N-E-S)

Signs of Unstable Snow

Recent Avalanches? 
Yes
Cracking? 
None Experienced
Collapsing? 
None Experienced
Avalanches refer to a wet loose - a handful observed in the Banner Summit area, numerous in the northern Sawtooths

Snow Stability

Stability Rating: 
Very Good
Confidence in Rating: 
High
Stability Trend: 
Steady

Bottom Line

Conditions were as forecast - generally stable conditions with no significant avalanche problems. Wind slabs were isolated, small, and unreactive. A few small natural wet loose were observed, and you likely could have triggered a small wet sluff on a steep, sunny slope.

Media/Attachments

Effect from recent north winds in Lola Creek in the Banner Summit zone.
Very small sluffs releasing from easterly aspects in Lola Creek.
Small wet loose avalanche down the ridge from Copper Mountain on Banner Summit. E, 8800'.
Numerous small wet loose avalanches in the basin below Williams Peak in the northern Sawtooths.
Numerous wet loose avalanches is Meadow Bowl in the northern Sawtooths. Most originated from cliffs on a SE-facing slope.

Advanced Information

Weather Summary

Cloud Cover:
Mostly Sunny
Temperature:
warm
Wind:
Light , NW
New/Recent Snowfall:
Settled HST from 3/24 storm was about 10cm

A few thin, high clouds - for all intents and purposes it was was clear. Temps were still warming when I left the field midafternoon.

Avalanche Observations

Saw a handful of D1 wet loose in the Banner Summit area, the largest is included in the photos. They were not particularly common in the terrain I viewed. I left the area around 1430, so more could have happened later this afternoon.

I also glassed from the Stanley Ranger Station and observed numerous wet loose slides. All were D1 and in fairly typical locations (see photos). I'm unsure if the majority of these ran today or yesterday - probably a mix.

Snowpack Observations

As mentioned above, the HST from 3/24 was about 10cm. There was a subtle/thin crust below this on solars, with a total of 25-30cm sitting on the 3/18 crust.

Low elevation sunny slopes had 10-20cm of moist surface snow at 1400, but were strong below the surface melt, supportable, and skied like soft/slow corn. Mid to upper elevation solars likely had deeper mush and were probably more problematic from a wet loose perspective.

Avalanche Problems

Problem Location Distribution Sensitivity Size Comments
Wet Loose
Isolated
Specific
Widespread
Unreactive
Stubborn
Reactive
Touchy
D1
D1.5
D2
D2.5
D3
D3.5
D4
D4.5
D5

I did not observe a wind slab problem. The wind slabs I saw were generally on solar aspects (from the N wind) and were small, warm/"gooey", and unreactive. There was some evidence of N winds in shaded terrain (upslope and cross-slope) but this did not produce any mid-slope wind loading that I saw. Dry loose was not a concern on 40+ shady terrain.

Terrain Use

I felt comfortable in about any terrain that was shaded/cold. I watched for evidence of wind slabs but did not see any. I would have avoided steep, sunny slope by afternoon.