Grand Mesa
AvalancheJaime Odin · Feb 21, 2023 · Grand Mesa
Weather
Windy. 30-40mph gusts from WSW. Depositing snow at and above treeline.
Snowpack
Quick hand put revealed a 10cm breakable wind crust with around 40cm of recent weak snow (F hard) beneath it, and a strong melt freeze crust beneath that. Difficult to get through the crust that was 50cm beneath the surface but once beneath it felt like relatively firm snow (1F+ hard). Ski penetration while breaking trail on wind affected snow was between 5-10 cm. The surface wind crust did show evidence of cohesion but it appeared to be isolated, no cracks were shooting although travelling on it felt hollow at times , ascended a mostly NE aspect at and above treeline but I don't think the crust was thick enough to call it a slab. Will be interesting to see how these layers react to the new snow above it as it is coming in warm and currently raining below treeline
Avalanche
N/A