Vail & Summit County
AvalancheDrew Gibson · Dec 4, 2022 · Vail & Summit County
Weather
Below treeline bright sun and partly cloudy skies let the sun beat down on solar aspects. By afternoon above treeline SW winds picked up, steady in the high 30s into 40s. Sky cover increased as the next storm is blowing in.
Snowpack
Up 20cm of new snow observed below treeline in the last 24hrs. At ridge crest strong west southwest winds were transporting snow onto lee aspects. During periods of higher wind speeds snow was loading further down on slopes. Intense sun until about 12:30 warmed up wind sheltered southerly aspects near and above treeline. It was possible to trigger small wet sluffs off of ski turns ~20cm deep, running on a melt freeze crust sitting just above the ground. Shooting cracks were observed on steep northwest facing rollovers above treeline. Cracking in some places was to the ground ~50cm-80cm deep. Some cracking was isolated to the top ~30cm. Though stability tests in the area had weak scores, Extended Column Test scores had no propagation.
Avalanche
Observed two natural D2 slides on ENE aspects south of Uneva Peak. These likely occurred the morning of December 4th as the debris was not covered with new snow from the night before. I was only able to see the debris pile due to failing visibility and a heavily corniced ridgeline.