These observations document past conditions at a small and variable scale. They are not to be confused with an avalanche forecast. They come from a variety of sources. We can only vouch for the quality of those produced by the SAC forecasters and professional observers.
Date and time of observation or avalanche occurrence Location Region Observation Type Photos Snowpack, Avalanche, Weather Videos Snowpit videos (tests, etc) Observation made by
04/03/2022 - 13:00 Mt Houghton Mount Rose Area Snowpack Observation Lots of bare ground showing on a SW aspect at 8700 ft. The snow remained supportable on N aspects until my departure around 2 pm. Southerly aspects on Mt Rose are almost completely snow free. Areas of deep and unsupportable wet snow started to exist on E aspects by 1 pm. Snow continues to melt on SE aspects above 9500 ft on Mt Houghton. The corridors of snow in the gullies are getting narrower. N, NE, and E aspects still have decent coverage on Relay Peak. Forecaster
04/02/2022 - 14:00 Hungalelti Ridge Carson Pass Area Snowpack Observation Professional Observer
04/02/2022 - 12:00 Mt. Judah Donner Summit Area Snowpack Observation Snowmelt has exposed many more rocks and other obstacles especially on sunny slopes. This is a west aspect at about 7400 ft. Some fissures are starting to melt out above the E facing slopes near the summit of Judah. Large areas of bare ground are now exposed on the south facing slopes. Finding continuous snow on south facing slopes has become more challenging. The snow on sunny slopes started to get unsupportable around noon on S facing aspects. Boot top deep wet snow near a waterfall that has melted out at about 7600 ft on a south aspect. Forecaster
04/02/2022 - 11:20 Silver Peak Cabin Creek, Deep Creek, or Pole Creek Area Snowpack Observation Public
04/01/2022 - 14:00 Forestdale Divide Carson Pass Area Avalanche Observation Professional Observer
04/01/2022 - 11:30 Rubicon Peak West Shore Area Snowpack Observation About 3 inches of wet surface snow existed above a supportable melt-freeze crust on E aspects. Deep wet snow existed below the crust. Areas around trees are melting out and getting shallow. Last night's refreeze remained mostly supportable until we left the area around noon. Patches of bare ground are becoming larger on E aspects. Forecaster
03/31/2022 - 11:00 Silver Peak Cabin Creek, Deep Creek, or Pole Creek Area Snowpack Observation E Bowl of Silver Peak Thin high clouds with sun breaks throughout the morning Firm melt freeze crusts on N aspects with little softening in the morning hours. View towards the Sierra Crest. Open water and running water widespread below 7400'. E aspect near 7000' with 18-20'' base. P hard M/F crust on top of 1F wet grains. Lots of dirt sections on the approach and ski out. Forecaster
03/30/2022 - 11:00 Tamarack Peak Mount Rose Area Snowpack Observation 8:30am-valley fog, low to mid level clouds, high thin cloud cover with lots of solar radiation. 9400' E aspect. Good refreeze of the snowpack with 2'' of soft surface snow on top of an 8'' M/F crust. 1.5' of wet grains below M/F crust. Below 9000' a thinner M/F crusts exists with some weakening by 11:30am. Variable snow surface conditions on N aspects Forecaster
03/29/2022 - 12:40 Relay Peak Mount Rose Area Avalanche Observation Public
03/29/2022 - 11:00 Castle Peak Donner Summit Area Snowpack Observation Castle Peak in the clouds at 9:30am Limited cracking on small wind slabs(4'' deep) in near treeline terrain. Anywhere from a 1 to 4'' melt freeze crust has formed near the snow surface Roller balls forming on E aspects by 9:30am. Forecaster
03/29/2022 - 09:00 Powderhouse Luther Pass Area (including Job and Freel) Snowpack Observation Just over an inch of new snow near the creek draining Grass Lake Looking down towards Grass Lake Not much evidence of wind loading on the summit ridge itself. You can see a very small (1") cornice next to exposed crust. Once in the NE facing trees there was almost enough snow to hide the previous surface texture. In the lower half of the Powerhouse the old snow was noticeably softer and clearly still wet under the fresh snow. Looking at the new snow at about 8500'. The old snow here was soft and wet. Professional Observer
03/28/2022 - 11:30 Elephants Hump Carson Pass Area Snowpack Observation Light dusting of new snow at trailhead Cracking on a very small wind slab near the summit ridge at 9000'. Previous wet surface snow refreezing with 2 to 4'' crusts A consolidated snowpack with wet surface snow refreezing. Looking S towards Elephants Back Forecaster
03/27/2022 - 12:30 Waterhouse Peak Luther Pass Area (including Job and Freel) Snowpack Observation A ski cut triggered this wet loose avalanche on a small NE facing test slope. Boot top boot penetration at 11:30. ECTN targeting Feb 14 facet layer. Wet and loose facets that easily clump together when squeezed. Visual contrast of N vs S aspect snow coverage. Summit view. Melted out S aspect foreground and N aspects in backgorund. Wet snow avalanche between Stevens and Waterhouse. Public
03/26/2022 - 11:45 Incline Lake Peak Mount Rose Area Avalanche Observation A ski cut around 11:45 am at the top of this ENE facing slope triggered a wet loose avalanche that entrained the top 12 to 16 inches of wet snow. Debris from the ski cut triggered wet loose avalanche. Knee deep wet snow on a N aspect at 10:00 am. Wet snow that did not support a skier on a NE aspect at 10:15 am. Hip deep wet snow next to rocks near 9700 ft @ 11:00 am. A thin melt-freeze crust on a N aspect at 9300 ft at 10:30 am Lots of rocks and exposed dirt on southerly aspects. Thin high clouds did not do much to prevent warming today. Thigh deep wet snow on a sunny ESE aspect at 11:15 am. Forecaster
03/26/2022 - 11:30 Tallac Desolation Wilderness Area (including Emerald Bay) Avalanche Observation Public

Pages

Subscribe to Central Sierra Nevada / Lake Tahoe Snowpack, Weather, and Avalanche Observations for California and Nevada from SAC