Front Range
SnowpackIan Fowler · Jan 10, 2024 · Front Range
Weather
High temperature was 5F at pass level. The winds were moderate out of the west but not so bad that I couldn't traverse the peak.
Snowpack
Below the treeline, snow depth is about 50 to 80cm, and currently, there is no slab, just fist hard storm snow on fist hard facets. Ski penetration was almost to the ground. As I gained elevation and the trees thinned at about 10600 feet the snowpack started cracking and collapsing. Collapses were terrain feature wide and the cracks were running from tree to tree. In a snowpit close to this elevation on a southeast slope, I found a crust down about 40-50cm that, in some areas, was supportive and stout and, in others, fragile and collapsible. Higher in elevation on a northeast slope, this crust was also present and was even more variable in its distribution. The Wind was blowing the snow around, but wind slabs were unevenly distributed across the terrain, and in many areas, it was just stiffening and not a hard slab yet.