Northern San Juan
AvalancheJeff Davis · Mar 28, 2017 · Northern San Juan
Weather
Beautiful Cloud inversion in the AM. Dense clouds slowly gained elevation throughout the morning before engulfing the mountain peaks around 1 pm. Snowfall was observed later in the day with less than an inch of additional accumulation. Winds were light and temperatures were springlike, warm temperatures in the valleys and at lower elevations.
Snowpack
8 inches of new snow was observed in the area. In the morning the snow was light and dry, but quickly trued heavy as temperatures rose and morning sun shined. The new snow turned wet at lower elevations. The greatest hazard observed today was in the near-treeline elevation band where temperatures settled the new snow into a soft slab. Natural and human triggered avalanches were observed at this elevation band on steep rocky slopes. Most avalanches observed started as point release, but gained mass as if moved down slope. Avalanches were running on a crust under the new snow.
Avalanche
R2-D2 Storm Slab Natural avalanche observed on Bear Face in the Bear Creek drainage. The avalanche started as a point release, but triggered a very small slab half way down the slope. It looked as if a few skier triggered slides were observed in E-ticket and Eagles nest halfway down the slope.