Sawatch

Avalanche

Kevin Nikolaides · Jan 8, 2022 · Sawatch

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Weather

Overcast, moderate W wind, about 20 degrees. Snow began picking up when leaving around 4pm

Snowpack

E aspect @ 11,600' (not far from ridge- lots of wind loading) : 205 cm snow depth. Stubborn but did have propagating failures on a layer 170cm from the ground (ECTP25 and CT27). I was able to get the slab to fail deeper by really wailing on it after 30 taps, first at 120cm and then 25cm from the ground. NW aspect @ ~11,000-11,500': 145cm snow depth. Scoured above and near tree line but from 11,400 down the snow had surprisingly little wind affect and the skiing was quite good.

Avalanche

none