Gunnison

Quick report

Zach Guy · Feb 17, 2026 · Gunnison

Weather

Moderate snow transport at valley floor along Slate River Road, no visibility of higher terrain. cloud cover: overcast; wind loading: moderate; recent snowfall (cm): 12; snow avail for transport: moderate amounts

Snowpack

ECTX results on a sheltered NE aspect; shovel went past all the weak layers through soft snow. Three prominent facet layers in the snowpack (2/11 down 35 cm, 1/23 down 50 cm, and 12/25 down 85 cm). It will be interesting to see if this storm is finally enough to collapse the Christmas Crust, which is 3 feet deep here. . No signs of instability underfoot. Most of our travel was on an existing skin track or short, steep slopes on the descent.

Avalanche

Poor visibility. I think there was a fresh ~D1.5 out of the looker's right Climax Chute, but it's difficult to say for sure.