Not quite 10 in Ten Lakes

Ten Lakes/ Grave Creek explore today, to look for recent avalanche activity and assess recently-developed avalanche problems. 

• Spotted 4 small slabs that released naturally on very steep (~40*) easterly slopes. The terrain for these slides looked to be either cross-loaded or top-loaded by westerly winds.
• There were likely more similar slides; visibility wasn't great and we didn't have good vantage points when the visibility improved.
• We found 4-6 inches of fresh snow in most loactions, with 8 inches in a few spots, possibly from drifting. The most recent snow was dry, and consists of heavily rimed particles and graupel, so it's not very cohesive.
• Low clouds in the morning gave way to convective showers  (S1-5, mostly rimed particles or graupel) by early afternoon. 
• We some some blowing snow near ridges and a few soft drifts in exposed spots in open trees. 
• We felt no collapses and saw no cracking, though much of the terrain where we were was well-traveled this weekend. 
• The large west and southwest facing slide paths in upper Grave Creek do not appear to have run during this winter's natural avalanche cycles.
• The snowpack below about 4500 feet is moist to wet below a refrozen surface. 

The loose fresh snow made for some fine riding up high.