Aspen
AvalancheDylan Craaybeek Brandon Levy · Jan 15, 2022 · Aspen
Weather
Cold, clear morning with a temperature of 19F at the trailhead at 8:40 AM. Temperatures quickly warmed up to the upper 20's to lower 30's by 10:00 AM. Calm to Light northwest winds throughout the day with occasional Moderate gusts and some light snow transport. No clouds visible at all throughout our day in the field.
Snowpack
The snowpack is more shallow in this area than it is in the rest of the Aspen zone. The height of snow (HS) ranged from about 80cm-120cm throughout the Upper Lost Man trailhead drainage with wind-loaded slopes around 1.5-2 meters deep. All snowpits indicate a poor structure with a firm (1F to P hard) slab resting on weak (F to 4F hard) facets at the bottom of the snowpack from west, to north, through southeast. Snowpack tests indicate a stable snowpack with multiple large column tests (2x ECTX and RB7) all showing stable results even in this more shallow area of the Aspen zone. A shallow near-treeline southwest-facing snowpit showed some unstable results on facets from early December.
Avalanche
Several old avalanches were observed and coded separately. Links to avalanche observations found here: Independence Mountain - https://avalanche.state.co.us/caic/obs/obs_report.php?obs_id=69021 Fourth of July Bowl - https://avalanche.state.co.us/caic/obs/obs_report.php?obs_id=69022 South-facing slab avalanche - https://avalanche.state.co.us/caic/obs/obs_report.php?obs_id=69023 Linkins Lake - https://avalanche.state.co.us/caic/obs/obs_report.php?obs_id=69024