Unstable Snowpack Test Results on Silver Peak

We toured in the Silver Peak area today.  We dug a snowpit on a northerly aspect at 7500' in below treeline terrain.  The Jan 4 rain crust along with loose sugary facets were easily identified in the snowpit.  Consistent snowpack test results showed that propagation is likely if failure can be initiated on this weak layer.  ECTP-14 and PST 30/100 END.  The recent storm snow continues to settle and gain strength with hand hardness from Fist at the surface to 1F at the base.  Even though the area has seen a lot of skier/rider traffic in avalanche terrain over the last few days, we chose to avoid most terrain over 30 degrees.  Snowpack tests are showing that the potential still exists for triggering a large and destructive avalanche.

SW winds increased in speed around 11am with gusts into the moderate range.  This was moving light to moderate amounts of snow and developing small wind slabs that were 2-4'' thick by midday off of ridges.  Soft snow exists for future wind transport as winds are forecasted to increase tonight and tomorrow.