Vail & Summit County

Avalanche

Kreston Rohrig · Apr 11, 2019 · Vail & Summit County

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Weather

Blustery and overcast most the day with a few small sucker holes of blue sky after 2pm. Ridgeline wind speeds were consistently moderate gusting to strong throughout the day.

Snowpack

6-10" of new snow on the ground was surprisingly well bonded to the old snow surface. Winds were strong enough to transport snow to all lee slopes and features, even below treeline along ridges or where the terrain was open. Dense slabs were forming 1-2' thick, but were probably deeper at higher elevations. Below the new snow, a thin dust layer was found sandwiched between a thick re-frozen crust. Below the old surface crust (10cm thick) the snowpack is still moist and has not had a deep freeze below treeline.

Avalanche

None observed, but visibility was poor.