Sawatch
SnowpackJason Konigsberg · May 2, 2019 · Sawatch
Weather
Mostly cloudy to overcast today with a few snow showers. Very windy and cold near and above treeline. Below treeline where it was sheltered from the wind, temperatures felt more mild.
Snowpack
About 30 cm of recent storm snow in sheltered areas. Sheltered areas are not very prevalent with strong winds today. Near and above treeline there are thick drifted slabs and areas where the snow is stripped back to old crusts. The snow surface stayed cold and dry above 12k feet. Below this elevation the snow surface moistened just a couple cms deep. By late afternoon the surface had frozen into a crust. Dry snow lies underneath. I didn't observe any obvious signs of instability today. the main story is the clouds, wind and cool temperatures keeping our wet avalanche problem at bay for now. A lot of snow has yet to warm up so tomorrow could bring the peak of wet activity within storm snow if winds are light and we see a lot of sun.