Northern San Juan
AvalancheJeremy Yanko · Mar 27, 2023 · Northern San Juan
Weather
Partly cloudy with off and on flurries. Moderate W/NW winds
Snowpack
Lower elevation (BTL/NTL) aspects facing East and southeast continue to be talkative after last weeks storm. Collapsing in flat terrain or along drifted ridges is quite prevalent in undisturbed areas. The crust below the new slab varies in hardness ranging from Pencil- to knife type resistance. No cracking has been observed and small test slopes have not yielded any failures with ski pressure. Near treeline at the top of the "Who" path, the new slab (55cm) failed upon isolation on both small and large column snowpack tests. There were no discernable facets on top of the crust but the failure plane crust underneath the F-4F slab served as a bad setup in cross-loaded terrain with concave features at the start zone. This 37 degree slope tends to have a fairly high return rate for skier triggering. Adjacent terrain facing NE near treeline gave a CT27 RP and an ECTX with the main layer of concern down 60cm of rounding facets.
Avalanche
Hard stop ski cut along an east-facing ridgeline