Continued faceting of upper snowpack near Mt. Lola.

The 07 Rd out towards Jackson Meadows is a mix of ice, dense snow, and exposed asphalt out to the Perazzo Meadows Rd junction. Conditions were challenging to keep snowmobiles from overheating, but possible to run engine and track at acceptable temperatures with a bit of care.  As in other areas, once above ~7,200-7,400' it became easy to keep sleds cool with better surface soft snow depth.

Along the ridgetop there is exposed, breakable rain crust on the snow surface presenting a possible travel hazard. On N aspects and flat terrain, there is wind affected soft snow in many areas for good riding conditions.

Snowpit data collected on a N aspect at 8,060' in near treeline terrain near the site of snowpit data from 12/25, revealed continued faceting around crust layers in the upper snowpack. Snowpit tests give some indication that the upper snowpack may fail with significant new snow loading. Recent NE wind events had scoured away the 12/24-12/25 snowfall down to the 12/24 rain crust in near treeline and above treeline terrain.