Sensitive Storm Slab above Meyers

Location Name: 
Below Coyote Rock
Region: 
Luther Pass Area (including Job and Freel)
Date and time of observation: 
Tue, 01/10/2017 - 14:30
Location Map: 
United States
38° 50' 46.554" N, 120° 0' 20.2896" 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
Observation made by: Professional Observer
Snowpit Observations
More detailed information about the snowpack: 

 

Fresh deep powder made for difficult trail breaking. New snow from the last 24 hours estimated to be around 3 feet in this location. Heavier snow on top of the snowpack created some upside down characteristics. This increased the trail breaking challenge but was consistent with the storm slab activity observed. 

Photo 1: Cracking was frequently observed near 7000 feet in below treeline terrain.

Photo 2: I remotely triggered the two small slopes from 30 feet away as I skinned by to investigate larger slide in background. This remote behavior was reproduced on virtually all similar test slopes in this area. 

Photo 3: This roughly 40 foot tall rock formation looks to have slid naturally within an hour or so of my visit. 

Photo 4: View of debris on a more East aspect of formation.

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: 
Warming
Wind Direction: 
Southwest
Accumulation rate: 
Greater than 1 in. per hour
More detailed information about the weather: 

Temperature had warmed a degree or two throughout the day and was just below freezing during my time in the field.