Sawatch

Avalanche

Ian Hoyer ยท Jan 13, 2017

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Weather

Warm day with very little wind. Some blue patches were visible in the morning, with clouds socking in and snow starting around noon.

Snowpack

~3 or 4 inches new snow overnight. Average snow depth in the 2-2.5 meter range. Dug on a number of aspects (W-S-E) below treeline and couldn't find any near surface facets at the Jan 1 interface. It took some attention to even find that interface, as the snow just gradually gets harder and more rounded the deeper you get in the pack. No significant results in an ECT.

Avalanche

Not perfect visibility, but I could see pretty well into the alpine, and only observed one avalanche. However, it was a big one. It ran full track, appearing to take out a handful of mature trees on the flanks and in the runout.