Observations

Eagle River – South Fork – French & Swiss Bowls

Red flags (obvious signs of instability):

• None observed

Weather:

• Partly cloudy with light S-SE wind and alpine temps in the upper 20s

Surface conditions:

• Below ~2500′: thin and weak melt-freeze crust under a few cm’s of surface hoar and heavily faceted, dry surface snow
• Above ~2500′: several cm’s of soft, dry wind-buffed powder on leeward terrain (excellent skiing); hard wind-packed snow or bare ground in exposed areas

Snowpack:

French Bowl snowpit:

• 3651′, 290* W aspect, 31* slope, 119cm height of snow
• ECTN19 @ 90cm (down 29cm) 2cm 4F faceted layer between 1F wind slabs
• CTM15 sudden collapse @ 15cm (down 104cm) on 4F depth hoar and facet chains above an early season melt-freeze crust
• 2 layers of buried surface hoar identified in pits in this area earlier this season are still identifiable but were unreactive in snowpit tests

The depth hoar and facet chains above the early season melt-freeze crust:

Upper Ship Creek Valley:

If you look closely, you can still see the outline of the D2.5 persistent slab avalanche that caught and carried a skier ~1000′ and killed a dog about two weeks ago (more info here and here); the debris path ends ~20 yards from the road and came within ~20 yards of structures on the property to the left of the path: