Detailed Observation
Date | 2019-03-17 |
Location | Eastern Alaska Range |
Observer | Ryan Tansey |
Avalanche | N |
General Observations
Hopper and I ski toured approximately 3 miles up Michael Creek drainage. Objective was to boot up and ski a chute named Wolf run (coordinates 63.448295, -145.714570), N aspect, 40 deg.
Snow pack was maritime-like and solid during the tour to the base of the chute, with a 5in layer of softer wet snow covering a firmer layer of hard pack. There were a number of open holes in the creek bed, however it was still moderately navigable (with some bushwhacking). We observed no avalanche debris near the drainage from the surrounding ridge line.
Approximately 500 feet up the chute we observed a 1cm layer of wind blown snow covering 5cm of melt/freeze crust, on top of a deep layer of faceted snow. Performed basic stability tests and the pack appeared unstable and susceptible to human triggered slides (see video, linked). We turned around and booted back down the chute, following our original tracks.
Uploaded Images
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