Vail & Summit County

Avalanche

Jason Konigsberg · Dec 29, 2016 · Vail & Summit County

View on map

Weather

Clear skies with light winds near treeline. If the winds were blowing along the high peaks you could not tell as there was zero snow being transported today.

Snowpack

I went to what is generally one of the weakest snowpack areas in the zone to see if the basal faceted layer had gained strength as in other areas of the zone...As expected, I found a thin and weaker snowpack than most of the zone. The basal facets at the ground are larger grained and the hand hardness is closer to fist hardness instead of four-finger hardness. I was able to get propagation in an extended column test after 26 taps on a northwest slope near treeline. On a northeast slope near treeline results of two propagation saw tests showed propagation potential in the weak layer. The HS (snow depth) in this area ranged from 60 to 80cms...Even with the shallower snow depth and a structure that is worse than other places, it will still be difficult to trigger a Persistent Slab avalanche. These thin snowpack areas should be given a bit more respect especially if the area gets a significant load in the future...No wind drifts were found to be sensitive today. There was little effective wind loading onto slopes with Wednesday's strong winds. Wind Slab avalanches will not be a problem going into Friday.

Avalanche

None observed.