Tahoe National Forest Sierra Avalanche Center

Pit dug in large open are below treeline.

Avalanche near this pit likely occurred on 1/10/2017

Pit dug in open near treeline terrain on low angle ridge between two avalanche paths. No signs of instability observed around Jan 9 rain crust.

Deep Tap Test 11 SP @ 50 cm.

Testpit dug at treeline. Lat/long is approximate.

Artificially loaded PST with 20cm of snow, AL-20cm PST 29/100 END at 80cm. Variable surface hoar size (2-6mm) throughout this area.

PST's difficult to do on the 57-51 cm facets due to irregular thickness of the crust layer above it.

NCF's above 12/15 rain crust showed signs of clumping together. Minor wind loading limited to upper ridgelines with limited amount of snow available for transport.