Various Obs from Donner

Location Name: 
Lincoln/Judah/Donner
Region: 
Donner Summit Area
Date and time of observation: 
Sat, 03/12/2016 - 12:00
Location Map: 
United States
39° 18' 6.7896" N, 120° 18' 56.0556" W
See map: Google Maps
US


Red Flags: 
Recent avalanche activity
Whumphing noises, shooting cracks, or collapsing
Recent loading by new snow, wind, or rain
Obvious avalanche path
Terrain Trap
Observation made by: Guide at Alpenglow Expeditions
Snowpit Observations
More detailed information about the snowpack: 

Today we toured in the Lincoln/ Judah/Donner area, and found a variety of instabilities. More snow fell last night than anticipated, and all instabilities observed were related to this new snow. Numerous easy, planar hand shears varied from 6-8" deep, on NW-N-NE-E aspects, between 7,600'and 8,300'.  Blowing snow was intense most of the day, and all cornices were growing (predominately NE aspects). Shooting cracks were localized to only the steepest features, (40+), but easy results were had on any ski tests above a skin track (See photo)

Of note, we triggered several small storm slabs (R1-D1, 6-10" crown, 25'wide, 25'run), at treeline on a due west slope. This slope was steep (40+), and sheltered from the wind. (micro terrain feature) 

Snowpack photos: 
Weather Observations
Blowing Snow: 
Yes
Cloud Cover: 
100% of the sky covered by clouds
Air temperature: 
Below Freezing
Wind Speed: 
Strong
Precipitation: 
Snow
Air temperature trend: 
Cooling
Wind Direction: 
Southwest
Accumulation rate: 
Greater than 1 in. per hour
More detailed information about the weather: 

Heavy weather most of the day, winds were steady and gale force out of the SW. Precip increased in the afternoon. ( S5@4pm)