Gunnison

Avalanche

(Public) Crested Butte Avalanche Center · Jan 8, 2021 · Gunnison

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Weather

Clear, warm, and calm.

Snowpack

We traveled on primarily NE and E facing aspects up to about 10,000 feet. The lower in elevation we went, the less of a slab we found. Near the east river valley bottom, on a NE aspect, the snowpack consisted of about 50-70 cm of F hard cohesionless, faceted snow. Very weak. The only areas we were able to find a slab below 9,500? was on isolated, exposed, ridgelines, where previous winds had drifted snow into a firmer slab about 5-20 cm thick. A bit higher in elevation, still below treeline, we were able to find somewhat of a slab remaining on top of the 12/10 interface. That being said, the slab was 4F to F hardness, bottom to top, and seems to be losing strength as the days go on. A propagation saw test on the 12/10 interface produced an uninterrupted propagation to the end of the column. PST (29/100) End. In the areas closer to town with a thinner snowpack, the persistent slab structure on shady aspects below treeline is becoming more difficult to find. With dry weather in the forecast after tomorrow, I expect the slabs to continue to rot away.

Avalanche

None observed.