Aspen
AvalancheMatt Huber · Dec 29, 2019 · Aspen
Weather
Cold and mostly clear skies. Temperatures rose quickly but still remained -5 F at noon. Winds were calm, even at 12,700 feet with no blowing snow on visible ridgelines.
Snowpack
Previous northwest winds built small, shallow (20-30 cm)pockets of wind-slab near ridgelines above treeline on east and southeast-facing slopes. The slabs dissipated quickly dropping below ridgelines. On a southeast facing slope near treeline, total snow depth was roughly 75 cm. 5 cm of recent snow sits on a 2cm pencil hard crust with facets below. Moderate non-propagating Extended Column Tests results at the facet/crust interface. The basal layer is 20 cm of mostly non-cohesive depth hoar, which produced moderate to hard propagating Extended Column Tests, ECTP16-18 at the top of the depth hoar.
Avalanche
A large natural avalanche near Willoughby peak, likely from the 12/14-15 natural cycle was observed. Above treeline on an east northeast aspect, the crown is mostly filled in by recent storms making it hard to determine if it is one or two separate avalanches.