Sawatch
SnowpackAnonymous ยท Dec 30, 2016
Weather
Dec 28th Weather: Broken, light wind from the West, -5 to -3.6 deg. C Dec 29th: Weather: Clear, moderate wind from the W decreasing to very light in the afternoon, -19C in morning rising to -5 in the afternoon.
Snowpack
terrain south of Robins creek: Elevation: 10,500-11,125ft. Aspect: SW-W-NW Snowpack: similar structure from SW-W-NW with fragmented stellars on the surface ~10-15cm, a cohesive slab that stiffened as we moved toward the NW 50-70cm thick, all resting on basal facets 5-20cm thick. HS was between 85 and 111 and tests revealed stubborn persistent slab activity. CT 28, ECTP26, both RP. No obvious signs of instability throughout the day. Skied 30-35deg slopes near and below treeline with pockets of 40deg on NW aspects. Obs on ridge N of Deer Gulch Elevation: 10,700-12000 Aspect: SW-W-NW Snowpack: Similar structure as day one obs with more obvious sun affect on S-SW aspects, creating a thin and slick suncrust. Though clear and cold overnight, not much surface hoar dev. below TL near creek beds. More obvious wind affected snow with wind board 4-10cm thick, increasing with elevation. Near TL presence of windslabs 20-40cm thick on basal facets. CT 8, 16, 10, and 12 in 4 different pits. ECTN. All tests at 12000ft. on W. aspect near TL. Skied NW flank of the ridge, traversing through some crust back to the SW and then dropped into the low able meadow near the road. Good skiing in the trees and in other protected terrain.