Grand Mesa

Snowpack

Colin Mitchell · Dec 18, 2015 · Grand Mesa

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Weather

Clear and sunny, with a light westerly breeze. Nice day.

Snowpack

Snow surface was 3mm SH. Winds had worked over the snow surface earlier this week, and any exposed areas or clearings had a wind-crust. Lot's of drifting around small terrain features. Study plot was a mix of wind drifts and stripped areas. HS varied from 170-25 in the startzone above shot #4. Some cornice formation was evident in the usual spots along the cliffs. Last week's snow definitely is forming a slab, and ski pen was only about 20 cms. Boots still go almost to ground in most places. PS slab problem will get worse with warm weather and more settlement. 10" of settlement on my master stake in 72 hours. Snowpack tests reveal potential for propagation (see profile)