Gunnison

Avalanche

public public · Jan 17, 2023 · Gunnison

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Weather

Cloudy, calm winds near and below the treeline, light snow showers throughout the day, and moderate snow beginning to fall around 4:00pm. 1-2? of accumulation during the day.

Snowpack

There was 35-40cm of settled storm snow over the past 2 days. HS was 235cm at 10,600? on a north aspect. No cracking or collapsing observed during the tour. We skied slopes up to ~35 degrees and jumped on several others of various aspects with no signs of instability. Ski cuts on steeper, unsupported slopes only produced minor sluffing in the upper few inches. Found 6 mm Surface Hoar on one particular open northerly slope at 10,600 ft that produced an ECTP9 under a soft 35 cm slab. Hasty pits and another Extended Column Test near ridgeline did not reveal sensitive surface hoar or produce propagating results.

Avalanche

Did not observe any fresh slides in the terrain we traveled, views of the surrounding terrain were very limited.