Southern San Juan

Avalanche

Chris Bilbrey · Dec 1, 2023 · Southern San Juan

Weather

Off and on snowfall (S1 to S2) throughout the morning. Generally light wind but gusty along ridgetops. Winds started ramping up around 11 AM.

Snowpack

The snowpack consist of four distinct layers. 1) Weak, large-grain facets/ depth hoar (4F-, 3-5 mm) at the ground, and likely hold-over snow from October. 2) November 19-20 storm that is faceted grains (4F-, 0.5-1.5 mm). 3) November 24-25 storm that is faceted grains (4F, 0.5-1.0 mm). 4) Recent storm snow (F to 4F-, top to bottom) of fairly low-density. All in all, snowpack remains supportive to skis with periodic trap door spots. Surface cracking confined to deeper drifted areas. Compression Test produced easy force sudden collapse failures in FC/ DH grains at the ground. Loose snow sluffing in steeper terrain could become an concern with another 6 to 8 inches of snowfall. Facets below the new snow would likely become entrained in long-running sluffs. Southeast-facing slopes near treeline have a well-developed crust (1/2 to 3/4 inch thick) below the new snow with 4F- facets below the crust.

Avalanche

None observed