We are preparing to leave for at least two weeks of heliguide training in Haines, but did a quick check of our Juneau Rounds, our standard urban transect, today. We found numerous small to medium slides from the thaw cycle of the last few days. Most paths slid, though no slides were particularly large.

Our workload this week has been such that we are still packing at 3am, so we will not detail the slides, but the notable ones were a slide to about 30 m elevation on J015 White Path, a small one to about 10 m on T011 Snowslide Creek above Thane Road, a slab from high on the Behrends Avenue path that only left a small debris pile to about 150 m, and numerous smaller slides along Thane Road.

The major cycle appears to have come with rain on previously dry snow on Saturday the 25th, continuing into Sunday the 26th. Some releases may still be continuing, but the cycle has definitely tapered off as the snowpack has become wetter.

Heavy rain or rapid warming may still trigger more slabs, but otherwise the activity should be minor now.

We have only one unpaid staffer who will not be back from Haines until March 14 - 18, so our bulletins will be suspended until then. This is when we wish we had funding for a second avalanche specialist to cover the gap, as well as an administrator so we did not have to spend all day on administrative chores and then work all night to prepare for our next course.

This is the closest urban runout to houses this year. This path's starting zone has been developing a heavy load over the last few weeks. This slide released about 0.5 m deep and 100 m wide across the main portion of the starting zone.