Public Observation #2021-497
Submitted:
December 16, 2021 3:57 PM
Observation Date:
December 16, 2021
Zone or Region:
Central Cascades
Activity:
Skiing/Snowboarding
Location:
Mckenzie Pass area
None reported
Today we skied a Northeast aspect at 6400' in the Mckenzie Pass area. When we left the truck at 6:30 am the snow was deep and light. The clouds moved in and out most of the day, but we had nice turns in periodic sunshine. Temperatures trended upwards all day, and the snow became heavier and heavier through out the day, but still skied nicely. A very delicate rhyme/ freezing fog layer accumulated on the snow surface during the tour and by the end of our tour there was noticeable density gradient between the cohesive surface snow (heavy) and the snow 3" below the surface (light). We also experienced periods of precipitation that we would be hard pressed to describe as snow, but wasn't quite rain. When we returned to the truck at 12:30 the snow was very wet at 4400ft.