Chicken Wing

SNOWPACK OBSERVATION
Chicken Wing
Submission Info
Sunday, March 18, 2018 - 1:45pm
Red Flags: 
Recent loading by new snow, wind, or rain
Chicken Wing 37° 45' 21.7584" N, 119° 2' 11.9436" W
See map: Google Maps
Snowpit Observations
More detailed information about the snowpack: 

Toured from Obsidian Dome parking lot to top of Chicken Wing. Surface hoar noted at parking lot (9:45am, 25 degrees F). Clear skies and no wind.

No cracking or whumping noted during this tour. No avalanche activity observed on Chicken Wing or other nearby slopes. Ski penetration was 15-20cm during tour with low density snow on the surface.

Hand pits at 8400 ft failed easily at 25 cm deep on thin graupel layer above melt freeze crust. At higher elevations this graupel layer disappeared. Hand pits generally failed with moderate force at 30cm deep.  Failure occurred on interface between last week's new snow and old melt freeze layer. 

We observed very little evidence of wind loading from Friday's storm on N and NE aspects of Chicken Wing. However, open N facing slopes on White Wing appeared to be cross loaded. 

We observed no melting on N aspects today, however more NE aspects had a thin melt freeze layer from yesterday.  

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