Observation Date: 01/10/2016

Route/Location:
Gem Lake point, north couloir, Trapper peak, north couloir, Gem Lake connecting couloir, etc.

Weather:

Wind:

New Snow: 0-3″

Avalanche Activity:
We spent a day skiing all over the Trapper cirque. There have been two small natural avalanche cycles in the past 9 days. The first was on January 2-3 when new soft slabs formed along ridgelines from wind and many steep windloaded starting zones slid 2-8″ deep. The second was associated with the January 8-9 snow in wind effected areas, where many starting zones slid (ex. Gem Lake couloir, Trapper North couloir, Trapper twin couloirs). With care, we felt comfortable skiing steep terrain that had already avalanched, but spent considerable thought managing the hazard. Slopes without wind effect were sluffing but felt safe. No sign of deeper instabilities based on visuals and no cracking/collapsing. For general information, the Baker Lake road is not drivable at all beyond the highway.

Other Comments:

Observer: Brian Story