Very isolated wind loading at lower elevations, and no obvious signs of instability were observed. Impressive variability over short distances (isolated wind slabs, wind damage, facets and "old snow" leftover from last week, new crust+facets above) at middle elevations, and extensive wind damage at upper elevations. We observed one fairly recent, small, D1 wind slab avalanche in middle-elevation terrain; the crown was blown in, and it was impossible to tell if it was natural or skier-triggered.
Winds blew around the little bit of recent storm snow, but those drifts and slabs were quite soft compared to those that formed last week. There isn't much snow left that is easily available for transport.
# | Date | Location | Size | Type | Bed Sfc | Depth | Trigger | Comments | Photo |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 |
E Fork Baker Ck NE 8200 |
D1 | U | U-Unknown | Estimating this happened sometime Thurs-Sat Jan 26-28. Likely a hard slab, but unknown. Unknown if natural or skier triggered (crown had reloaded). |
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I didn't see any significant recent activity in upper elevation terrain in the southern Boulder Mtns.
An old glimmering crust was exposed (scouring) on a WNW-facing slope from about 8600-8800' near the headwaters of Fox Ck. I'm guessing this was either 12/31 or 12/26. The exposed glimmering crust was not widespread but was interesting to see.
Some S-SW middle and lower elevation slopes (>30*) had a "new" 1cm crust below 1-2cm of small FC and PP/DF. Will be something to keep an eye on going forward.
Overall impression: The upper snowpack/snow surface is now a mixed bag/highly variable in exposed middle elevation terrain in this drainage, much more so than it was on Tues Jan 24 in the same area.
Problem | Location | Distribution | Sensitivity | Size | Comments |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
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|
Unknown |
Layer Depth/Date: 20-50cm Comments: Shaded area is where we traveled and observed the problem. |
We did not enter any starting zones - family day of riding.