Assessment of the damage

Snow conditions were:

• Powder
• Wet

We rode:

• Mellow slopes
• Open trees

We stayed away from:

• Alpine slopes
• Cut blocks
• Steep slopes

The day was:

• Cloudy

Avalanche conditions

• 30cm + of new snow, or significant drifting, or rain in the last 48 hours.
• Whumpfing or drum-like sounds or shooting cracks.

Had to assess the damage from the massive deluge of rain. Snowpack depths ranged from 50cm at 1500m to 90-110cm at 1900m.

We had cracking and whumpfing on the way up in open areas above 1750m.

Shockingly the late December surface hoar was undisturbed by the rain.

The majority of the Snowpack except for the top 20cm was moist to the ground.

The early December surface hoar is down 35-40cm.