Northern San Juan
AvalancheColin Mitchell · Dec 27, 2023 · Northern San Juan
Weather
Bluebird day with cool temps and light and variable winds. No snow transport observed anywhere around us or in the surrounding area.
Snowpack
The snow surface was a mix of wind crusts and softer, faceting snow from the recent storm. Height of snow varied from 30- 60 cm. On slopes with a more southerly tilt, recent snows rested on a melt-freeze crust formed during our last warmup. On shadier slopes, we found a soft (~4f), but supportable mid-pack slab. Wind-stripped areas with a snowpack less than about 40 cm were faceted to the ground in most cases. The surface crust/thin slab was not supportable to skis anywhere we traveled, and produced some cracking with only minor propagation. Larger, probably harder, and deeper drifts, were easy to spot in the surrounding above-treeline terrain.
Avalanche
No new avalanches observed