Front Range
SnowpackIan Fowler · Dec 9, 2021 · Front Range
Weather
Unusually calm in Rocky Mountain National park with light north east winds. Snowfall was steady at 1cm per hour for the 4 hours of the tour. My tracks had completely filled in on my return journey.
Snowpack
20-25cm of new snow. North aspects BTL had up to 75 cm depth and very weak structure. I was surprised to see how quickly the new snow was forming into a slab. The snow was cracking around my skis and there was propagation on an extended column test. Above tree-line coverage was spotty and not many areas had enough snow to produce a significant avalanche. Some of the gullies could have enough existing snow to produce a large avalanche. On south facing slopes the new snow was sitting on dirt.