Vail & Summit County
SnowpackAndrew McWilliams · Nov 19, 2025 · Vail & Summit County
Weather
Light westerly winds and mostly clear skies with above-freezing temperatures.
Snowpack
The snowpack consists of 10 to 40 centimeters of new, drifted snow resting on a 5 to 10 cm thick layer of basal facets. Where there is snow. South, southwest, and west-facing slopes didn't have any snow. The deepest drift I found was about 80 cm deep right at the ridgeline - there was even a very small avalanche just below the cornice. Interestingly, the avalanche slid on a density change within the most recent snow, rather than the old snow on the ground. I did find intact surface hoar grains on the snow surface. While this will become a future weak layer, the patches of snow that hold it are very discontinuous across slopes. With the next storm, you might trigger an avalanche in isolated areas on this layer, but chances are it won't be large enough to bury you.