Feb 2-3: Heather Ridge
2/15/08
WA Stevens Pass
2158
0
Sorry guys and gals: pics will follow
TR: Skinned up to Heather Ridge Sunday (as well as Saturday). Vastly different conditions on Sunday as compared to Saturday. Some significant wind had moved in Saturday night and moved a lot of snow. Most slopes became cross loaded. Snow became much heavier. (Out of wind affected areas snow quality was high and BTW much faster than Saturday when it was more bottomless)
Snowpit Analysis:
Snowstability 10m below Heather Ridge yielded poor results. Compression test produced a fracture at about 16 inches with three or four hard taps with my hand (palm down). Shovel test produced the same fracture with very little force. Rutschblock test failed with the skiers weight on the isolated column. Solid rain/sun crust about 4 feet down. Another rain/sun crust 4 inches above that which is much weaker. Shears seen on these tests were on a weak layer about two feet down from the top.
Given the location of the snowpit I was not confident that it represented at all the conditions even 50 m below the pit. Still the results pointed to very high danger on the top 10-50m or the East facing slopes (looking toward Yodlin) from the corniced ridge down the steepest slopes of Heather. My interpretation is that travel in these prime corniced start zones could very well set off slab avalanches and what is perhaps even more liklely large cornice breaks.
The snow in non wind affected areas was by contrast much more stable. Sluffing of the top 8 inches of the most recent storm snow was common.
All in all, outside the obvious start zones and steep slopes, conditions seemed very stable.
TR: Skinned up to Heather Ridge Sunday (as well as Saturday). Vastly different conditions on Sunday as compared to Saturday. Some significant wind had moved in Saturday night and moved a lot of snow. Most slopes became cross loaded. Snow became much heavier. (Out of wind affected areas snow quality was high and BTW much faster than Saturday when it was more bottomless)
Snowpit Analysis:
Snowstability 10m below Heather Ridge yielded poor results. Compression test produced a fracture at about 16 inches with three or four hard taps with my hand (palm down). Shovel test produced the same fracture with very little force. Rutschblock test failed with the skiers weight on the isolated column. Solid rain/sun crust about 4 feet down. Another rain/sun crust 4 inches above that which is much weaker. Shears seen on these tests were on a weak layer about two feet down from the top.
Given the location of the snowpit I was not confident that it represented at all the conditions even 50 m below the pit. Still the results pointed to very high danger on the top 10-50m or the East facing slopes (looking toward Yodlin) from the corniced ridge down the steepest slopes of Heather. My interpretation is that travel in these prime corniced start zones could very well set off slab avalanches and what is perhaps even more liklely large cornice breaks.
The snow in non wind affected areas was by contrast much more stable. Sluffing of the top 8 inches of the most recent storm snow was common.
All in all, outside the obvious start zones and steep slopes, conditions seemed very stable.
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