Leaderboard

I went up to Chair Peak last two Saturdays. I noticed a hard, 1/4" thick layer of ice under the snowpack. Last Saturday it was covered by 12" of unconsolidated snow. The steep slopes in Chair basin had slid below the SW Chimney all the way to the hard layer. I personally find the persistent sliding layer unusual for the Cascades, and I don't think the warm, wet weather this week will do much to consolidate the snowpack to the sliding layer or below it. I am concerned that the sliding layer will persist throughout the winter causing high avalanche danger until some kind of event or change in conditions bonds the ice layer to the layers below and above it. Please be mindful as you head out into the backcountry this weekend that avalanche conditions appear to me to be uncharacteristic of the Cascades. Be safe out there.

I met a guy in the Alpental backcountry last year who had tech inserts in a pair of Koflachs that he used with a split board. Probably the weirdest setup I've ever seen. But it's definitely possible!