Adirondack CommunityAvalanche Project

Observation Details

Early season backcountry scoping.

Skinning was possible from the Loj, Avy pass ski trail was skiable. Frequent rocks in both.

Pit dug on Colden:

ECT broke upon significant wailing on the shovel 55cm down, total pit depth was 85cm. The break was on a crust that we identified as the rain crust from the heavy rainfall before Thanksgiving. This crust was close to the ground and will be something to watch going forward.

The snow was soft on hard throughout the pit, going from fist to 4 finger to one finger at the crust layer.

After careful deliberation, we decided to go up and ski the line. Coverage was variable, with the best skiing where the wind had dumped additional snow. We knew that there was potential for some of the snow on the top to sluff since it was semi-wind compacted. As we ascended, we observed varying depths and levels of wind effect on the snow.

We skied with caution, mindful of the variable conditions. Our final skier triggered a small wind sluff while making a turn over a small convex. The "slab" immediately broke up into dry sluff, not impairing the skier.

The bottom line:

The Dacks are not quite ready; the wind has loaded some lines with snow but has also created unstable pockets on those lines. The snowpack needs more depth, as expected.