Northern San Juan
SnowpackAmy Pertuz · Feb 1, 2023 · Northern San Juan
Weather
A crisp start this morning made the clear skies and mild mid-day temperatures at ridgetop welcome. Solar radiation could be felt, and winds remained light in the alpine. Temperatures peaked in the low 20s but felt cool in the shade.
Snowpack
Settlement cones and decreasing ski-penetration depth speak to the settlement as well as the strengthening the snowpack has undergone in the last week. Surfaces remained dry and cold in the shade but were becoming moistened on some lower-elevation sunny slopes. We did not observe significant loose activity-wet or dry- in this area. Overall, the snowpack in this area is deep, averaging from 150 to 175 cm along the skin track as we ascended below-treeline northerly forested terrain. Near tree line and in the alpine, the effect of the winds on northerly slopes leaves this aspect more variable in coverage, with some scoured areas on wind-exposed features and nearby depressions still holding snow. This can make easing on and off of the deeper persistent slab structure a little trickier in these more wind affected alpine northerlies. The mid pack here is a cohesive slab of 4F and 1F snow here. Southerly and easterly terrain showed evidence or recent light drifting from northerly and westerly winds. Easterlies appear well filled in and with consistent coverage in the slopes near Ophir Pass. Coverage on high south-facing terrain in this area looks healthy and less variable than it can look in some years. Overall this is a deep snowpack for this rime of year with consistent coverage.