Vail & Summit County
SnowpackMike Floyd · Dec 17, 2020 · Vail & Summit County
Weather
Increasing high clouds, mild, moderate winds at ridgetop, calm elsewhere.
Snowpack
Plenty of weak snow but large, continuous slabs remain elusive. 40-60 cm average height of faceted snow below treeline. Difficult travel with ski penetration to the ground in many places. Supportive snow was isolated to wind affected spots near and above treeline. I dug a pit at the point where I triggered a whumpf, which is also the start of an avalanche path. It had a shallow wind slab, poorly bonded to the snow beneath with an ECTN4 20 cm down failing on buried near surface facets from the last dry spell. The remaining snow was faceted and unsupportive with a remnant crust and depth hoar at the base (ECTX). Once you travel about 50 m below ridgelines, the snow is soft, shallow and unsupportive. Looking at adjacent terrain, above treeline is scoured on west and southwest slope.