Vail & Summit County
SnowpackJason Konigsberg · May 8, 2022 · Vail & Summit County
Weather
Winds were strong and gusty from the west. The wind and temperatures felt much cooler than yesterday. Partly cloudy skies with an increase in cloud cover after we were down at about noon.
Snowpack
Above treeline we found a better refreeze of the snow surface than expected due to twelve hours (10 PM to 10 AM) of below freezing temperatures and cool winds. The temperature at 7 AM at 12k feet was 28 degrees which was about 10 degrees cooler than yesterday morning. Near treeline was a different story, with temperature above freezing all night. The surface freeze, due to a few hours of clear skies, was just enough for good travel in the morning but broke down quickly after a few hours of sun. The snowpack was mostly unsupportable near to below treeline on our exit from 11 AM to 12 PM.---We traveled on a steep north-northwesterly slope and found cold, dry, firm, wind-pressed conditions above 13k feet. Below about 13k feet on northerly was a firm but slightly softening, and very supportable, melt-freeze crusts.