Aspen
AvalancheDylan Craaybeek · Mar 14, 2022 · Aspen
Weather
Scattered sky this morning quickly cleared into a warm, sunny day. Sky cover was Few after around 11:00 AM and temperatures were above freezing below 11,000 feet. Light winds gusting Moderate throughout the afternoon with some light snow transport along ridgelines.
Snowpack
Rapid snow settlement today. Snowmass Timberline met-station recorded an HS of 86.2 at 8:00 AM and then 84.6 by 3:00 P.M. Southerly-facing slopes had very wet snow surface by 1:00 P.M. or earlier depending on slope angle. The average height of snow in West Willow is around 2 meters deep. Northerly slopes hold a slab 70-90cm thick on top of weak (F-) facets from the extended dry spell. Only two collapses were experienced today without shooting cracks. A Rutschblock test on a northeast-facing slope showed unstable results (RB3) failing on the facet layer buried 85 cm below the snow surface. Southeast-facing slopes show some signs of concern underneath a thick (4cm) crust in the dry faceted layer from the extended dry spell. Several extended column tests below treeline on southeast slopes failed in 20-30 taps on this dry facet layer and I experienced one large collapse with cracks after completing one snowpack test and climbing out of the pit.
Avalanche
Several old and a few recent avalanches were observed and coded separately. A skier triggered an avalanche and was taken for a ride while I was watching. The skier is okay and traveled out on his own. That avalanche is coded here: https://avalanche.state.co.us/caic/obs/obs_report.php?obs_id=70752