February 26, 2009, Snoqualmie Pow and Crust

The goods are above ~4500' at Snoqualmie. 4500' to the highway has various forms of breakable crust under 4-8" of fluffy wonderful. My fat skis only kind of helped. One surprising whumph (10'x10' ) on a tiny convexity near a forest/clearing boundary at about 4500. Snow's deep enough up high that anything under ~15 degrees requires effort to make downhill progress. Rime on both east and west sides of trees, primarily west, as usual. N-S ridgeline appears to have been hit pretty hard with winds out of the NW.

Snow of the form: pow over variable crust layer over soft over bomber. Crust softens with elevation. Soft-bomber bond quite variable. Windloaded pockets up high are deep. Wasn't sold on stability, kept mostly to shallow slopes. Nothing besides sluffs in the new snow moved on the ski down, despite a crust-induced biff in a touchy spot. Easy trailbreaking through the trees (light snow atop bomber), deeper snow in the open. Skintrack was partway refilled (2") on the way home.

Mighty fine to get out in new snow. Boo for breakable crust.