Sawtooth Avalanche Center

Public Field Report

Observation Details

Observation Date:
April 6, 2020
Submitted:
April 6, 2020
Zone or Region:
Galena Summit and Eastern Mtns
Activity:
Skiing/Snowboarding
Location:
Titus Peak

Observed Avalanches

Did you observe any avalanches? 
Yes
Avalanche Type:
Soft Slab
Size:
Size 2: Could bury, injure, or kill a person
Elevation:
9800 ft
Aspect:
N
Comments:
Observed these slab avalanches on Titus Peak and numerous other point releases from Titus Ridge today. They all looked relatively fresh - can’t tell if the slab avalanches on Titus Peak broke within the new snow or on the persistent weak layer of near surface facets.
Photo:

Signs of Unstable Snow

Did you see shooting cracks? 
No
Did you experience collapsing or whumpfing? 
Yes, Isolated

Observations

There was about 4-5 inches of new snow on the summit this morning - moist at the top of the summit and a bit dryer as you climbed the ridge. Very little to no wind transport occurring while I was out there. When I started my tour, it was lightly snowing with the occasional poking through of the sun - poor visibility overall. Storm picked up as I was on my way out - I’d estimate somewhere between S1 and S2 snowfall. I dug down on a due N aspect at 9700 feet just down the ridge from the Titus Lake chutes. Performed 2 ECTs, with neither of them yielding propagating results. Personally, I still don’t trust the current layer of near surface facets, but perhaps it is gaining some strength? HS was 155 cm at my pit location. Whenever the sun poked through and hit solar aspects, the new snow was almost instantaneously point releasing - lots of debris in between Titus Lake peak and weather station peak. I made the plan before starting to avoid avalanche terrain, given the additional load and recent avalanche activity.

Media

Numerous avalanches on the E ridge down from from Titus Peak
Point releases seen from the top of the Titus Lake chutes