Southern San Juan

Avalanche

Chris Bilbrey · Oct 30, 2019 · Southern San Juan

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Weather

Sunny and cold. Light winds with moderate gusts along ridges.

Snowpack

3-6" of snow accumulated during the recent storm. Snow was low density (light and fluffy) and winds easily transported the new snow into drifts 10-12" deep. Thickest drifts are not widespread but isolated to shady, higher elevation terrain/ couloir's. Snow cover on windward and sunny slopes is marginal with lots of natural obstacles. This is the first storm of the season to provide continuous snow cover in the La Plata Mountains. Before this storm, almost all slopes in the range were bare ground. Moving forward, shady aspects near and above treeline have the most continuous snow cover along with lower elevation slopes facing due north above 10,500 feet. This snow will most likely persist, weaken, and develop into our first weak layer of the season during the next prolonged period of dry weather. The big question is how much snow will linger and what type of slab will build above it?

Avalanche

Evidence from last year's active avalanche cycle still visible with snow and debris piled up in the runouts of a few slide paths.