Strong refreeze and developing loose wet instability on Incline Lake Peak.

Location Name: 
Incline Lake Peak
Region: 
Mount Rose Area
Date and time of observation: 
Sat, 04/22/2017 - 09:50
Location Map: 
United States
39° 17' 40.4592" N, 119° 56' 27.8052" W
See map: Google Maps
US


Red Flags: 
Rapid warming
Observation made by: Forecaster
Snowpit Observations
More detailed information about the snowpack: 

Evidence of a strong snow surface refreeze existed on open E and SE aspects traveled. The surface crust was 10 to 12 cm (4 to 5 inches) thick in most area. Most treed areas also held a strong snow surface refreeze. It is worth noting that on Incline Lake Peak the forest canopy is much less obscuring of the sky than in most below treeline locations along the Sierra Crest.

NE aspects traveled held thin breakable surface crust of 2 cm (~ 1 inch) on top of recent storm snow unaffected by previous melt. Once this thin crust had melted, signs of loose wet instability were present. Small loose wet avalanches involving the top 3 to 4 cm (~2 inches) of the snowpack were easy to intentionally skier trigger at 9:50 am on sun exposed NE aspect test slopes along the summit ridge.

Snowpack photos: 
Weather Observations
Blowing Snow: 
No
Cloud Cover: 
25% of the sky covered by clouds
Air temperature: 
Above Freezing
Wind Speed: 
Moderate
Air temperature trend: 
Warming
Wind Direction: 
Southwest