Investigating the Dec 1 PWL on Tamarack Peak

We went to Tamarack Peak today to look at the large avalanche on the Hourglass and to investigate how the recent snow and the Dec 1 facet layer are changing. We immediately noticed how much more supportable the snow has become over the last few days. As we ascended the peak, we only sank into the snow above our boot tops while standing on our skis. It was much deeper on Sunday. The snow remained soft and cold in most of the places we traveled. A few of the most exposed areas near the ridges had areas of wind-affected snow. 

We made our way over to the shoulder of Tamarack Peak to look at the large avalanche in the Hourglass. We were in low-angle terrain on the ridgeline about 700 ft away and saw shooting cracks on the slope in front of us. These cracks were older and had filled in some. As we explored the ridge, it became clear that the entire bowl had collapsed when the Hourglass slid. There were old cracks that extended about 1000 ft from the edge of the avalanche. We found a low-angle spot just above one of these cracks to dig a pit. The Dec 1 facet layer was buried about 4.5 feet below the surface. It has gained some strength, but snowpit tests still indicate that if it does break, the resulting fracture could travel along that layer for a long way. The snow above the weak layer continues to consolidate and gain strength, making it harder to trigger the weak layer.

We move down the ridge, hoping to get a glimpse of another old avalanche we had seen on the far east ridge of Tamarack as we drove in. Unfortunately, a thin layer of clouds moved in and obscured our view of this terrain, so we did not get any more details.