Pro Field Report

Basic Information

Observation Details

Observation Date:
February 12, 2023
Submitted:
February 12, 2023
Observer:
SAC - Scott Savage (OFF DUTY)
Zone or Region:
Soldier and Wood River Valley Mtns
Location:
Croy-Colorado Gulch area (5500-7000': variety of aspects)

Signs of Unstable Snow

Recent Avalanches? 
None Observed
Cracking? 
None Experienced
Collapsing? 
None Experienced
I saw one small, 2 foot thick windslab that failed last week. The cornice/wind feature near this slide also cracked extensively, probably last week. See photo below.

Snow Stability

Stability Rating: 
Very Good
Confidence in Rating: 
High
Stability Trend: 
Steady

Bottom Line

You may be able to find a hard wind slab somewhere in this area that is still sensitive to skiers, but this instability seems to have stabilized significantly or run it's course here. The snowpack contains plenty of faceted layers, but the empirical evidence indicates you'd have to get unlucky to trigger a sizeable persistent slab avalanche in this area (lots of tracks in avalanche terrain and no D2 avalanches in many weeks, about 5" of snowfall in the past month, no recent reports of significant cracking or collapsing).

Media/Attachments

This 2 foot thick, narrow, very hard wind slab probably released last week during the extended period of strong winds. Note the extensive cracking in the foreground on top of the wind feature. E aspect near 6500' in Colorado Gulch.
Wind-affected snow near 6400' on the Croy Canyon-Colorado Gulch divide.

Advanced Information

Weather Summary

Cloud Cover:
Mostly Sunny
Temperature:
Teens and 20s F
Wind:
Calm
New/Recent Snowfall:
None

No significant weather during the short time I was out (11 AM - 1 PM). There is very little snow available for transport.

Avalanche Observations

See photo of old wind slab.

Snowpack Observations

I traveled on several knife-hard wind slabs on generally E-SE aspects below exposed ridges; they were up to 3 feet thick, and none were reactive. In the areas with less wind-loading from last week, the thinner hard slabs, sastrugi, and wind board were faceting.

Surfaces on shady, somewhat sheltered slopes: 20-30cm of near-surface FC ("recycled powder").
Solar surfaces: mixture of "young" corn, glazed +very hard surfaces, and breakable crusts.
"Margins" on the compass (W, W-NW, E-SE, SE) in somewhat sheltered terrain: mostly breakable crusts and FC, with little to no meltwater penetration into layers below or in between crusts.

S-SW on the east side of the highway (Quigley, Patterson) were burned off to the ground in places. This process is farther along on the Pioneer Mtns side of the drainage versus the Smoky Mtn side of the drainage.

Bare ground showing on some S-SW, lower and middle elevation slopes in the Quigley canyon and Patterson Peak areas.

Avalanche Problems

No notable problems were observed. The rock-hard wind slabs that formed last week were unreactive - no cracks with me stomping and jumping on them where it was safe to mess with them. The thinner, softer wind slabs and "wind-board" was faceting and losing strength. I did not observe any loose snow problems, but I only traveled on slopes less than 35*.

Terrain Use

I was traveling solo. I avoided all large, heavily wind-loaded starting zones and all slopes steeper than 35*.