Winter Day on Mt. Tallac

We toured Mt. Tallac today to monitor current avalanche conditions.  Less snow fell with the recent series of storms along the southern Sierra Crest vs the northern Sierra Crest of the forecast area.  There was 4'' of storm snow near the trailhead, up to 1' in the 8000-9000' range, with some more favored areas greater than 1' deep.  This recent storm snow is on top of a previous rain crust which could be felt at the lower elevations and in steeper terrain.  Loose dry sluffing was consistent and running fast in steep terrain (>38 degrees) and in some cases running full path and down near or on the rain crust.  We did not see any evidence of storm slab instabilities, but did see some small cracking in wind loaded terrain.  Signs of instability were very limited besides the loose dry sluffing that we observed.  We had partial visibility throughout the day and could only confirm multiple other loose dry sluffs throughout this area, we did not see any slab avalanche activity.   

Photo#1:  Loose dry sluffing was common in steeper terrain.

Photo#2: Small shooting cracks in wind loaded terrain.

Photo#3:  Mixed weather-cold and brisk, periods of sun, low level clouds, and light snow throughout the day.

Photo#4:  Looking north towards the West Shore