Northern San Juan

Avalanche

Becs Hodgetts · Dec 9, 2020 · Northern San Juan

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Weather

Bluebird calm day. Some wispy cirrus rolling in around 2pm.

Snowpack

Below treeline I could easily trigger loose dry sluffs on steep east and north facing road banks. HS on north below treeline ranged from 30cm to 70cm, rocks and stumps were legitimate hazards. Snowpack was completely faceted yet still supportive to skis. East below treeline averaged 20cm deep, with 2cm mfc at surface that was moist by noon. Most south slopes were bare to around 11000', and patchy snow cover above that. N North and East near and above treeline hold the most snow. Dug on a north near treeline slope, HS 100cm, with 70cm thick wind-packed facet mid pack (1F). This rests on 10cm of small depth hoar, and was not reactive in CT or ECT tests. The upper 20cms were loose near surface facets.

Avalanche

More of a subtle sluff really...