Burried Surface Hoar in Buck Ridge

We rode in 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Yellowmules into the head of Muddy Creek today. At the 1st Yellowmule we found punchy, weak snow in several places. This is a sign that the snowpack is continuing to facet near the ground. The snow seemed more faceted than it was the last time we were in Buck. We saw a new layer of surface hoar on the snow surface all over Buck Ridge, which could be a problem in the future. We also found a layer of buried surface hoar 8-12” below the surface throughout Buck. 

We dug at the head of Muddy Creek, and we found 160 cm (~5 feet) of snow on a north aspect. We got an ECTP8 on a surface hoar layer 10” below the snow surface. Where we dug was near a ridgeline, and the surface hoar was intact despite this area getting wind. When deciding to get into steeper terrain riders and skiers should assess for instability with an ECT at this layer, and they should still be wary of the weak, sugary snow at the bottom of the snowpack.