February 21, 2016, Paradise
2/21/16
WA Cascades West Slopes South (Mt Rainier)
2049
0
Distributed gaggles of WAC skiers wandered about at Paradise, finding generally great snow. We found windslab, especially in the east bowl of Mazama ridge. Didn't see much storm slab, but angles were mellow all day.
Windslab above the E bowl of Mazama moved on two storm layers 1/2 way down and 3/4 ths of the way down in the new snow above the rain crust. The upper one was more active at CT 20, ECT 25, sudden-ish planar. Cornice-kicking was easy and big; a pantheon of gargoyles even on treed sections of Mazama ridge. No results dropping mini-fridge to refrigerator-size cornices on 30-33 degree E slopes.
Skiing best on sheltered W slopes.
Precip arrived on schedule, with increased W winds. A couple millimeters of graupel fell at about 3 pm.
Windslab above the E bowl of Mazama moved on two storm layers 1/2 way down and 3/4 ths of the way down in the new snow above the rain crust. The upper one was more active at CT 20, ECT 25, sudden-ish planar. Cornice-kicking was easy and big; a pantheon of gargoyles even on treed sections of Mazama ridge. No results dropping mini-fridge to refrigerator-size cornices on 30-33 degree E slopes.
Skiing best on sheltered W slopes.
Precip arrived on schedule, with increased W winds. A couple millimeters of graupel fell at about 3 pm.
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