Northern San Juan
SnowpackChris Landry · Jan 5, 2013 · Northern San Juan
Snowpack
Since New Year's day, noonish, there have been several skier triggered slides in the RMP area, two of which certainly appeared, from tracks, to have had involvements, and a third (actually three slides) that was remotely triggered and may have dusted a group.
The two apparently skier triggered events were on the north side of the Pass in the so-called "Powerline" terrain facing northwest, below Putney. Both were D2 and one may have had multi-meter deposition. I've attached a couple of photos of these ... tough to get good light on this terrain at this time of year. Note the high traverse on the N aspect just below Putney ...
I didn't see either of these mentioned in the backcountry reports, unless they were described as naturals. The tracks into crowns, wild bailout on the flank of one, and lack of any tracks on the bed or debris, indicate to me that these were skier triggered. Both were serious, close calls, is my guess. apparently, they were not reported, or observed by forecasters.
The other 'set' of three adjoining slabs was near US Basin, triggered by a party traversing low angle terrain below a series of north-facing gullies. Those were also substantial events that could have buried a few of them at once.
My sense was that you had the rating just right last week with CON on NW-N-E ... now we're into the bad zone between Mod and Con ... naturals are much less likely, but skier triggering has become only marginally less likely, on those aspects, and the sunny aspects that were Mod are now weakening by the day, and avys running on the ground (w/out an underlying layer of depth hoar), as the bed, are not implausible. We've seen one substantial crown on a due S aspect, well above treeline, above the Ophir Pass road.
The two apparently skier triggered events were on the north side of the Pass in the so-called "Powerline" terrain facing northwest, below Putney. Both were D2 and one may have had multi-meter deposition. I've attached a couple of photos of these ... tough to get good light on this terrain at this time of year. Note the high traverse on the N aspect just below Putney ...
I didn't see either of these mentioned in the backcountry reports, unless they were described as naturals. The tracks into crowns, wild bailout on the flank of one, and lack of any tracks on the bed or debris, indicate to me that these were skier triggered. Both were serious, close calls, is my guess. apparently, they were not reported, or observed by forecasters.
The other 'set' of three adjoining slabs was near US Basin, triggered by a party traversing low angle terrain below a series of north-facing gullies. Those were also substantial events that could have buried a few of them at once.
My sense was that you had the rating just right last week with CON on NW-N-E ... now we're into the bad zone between Mod and Con ... naturals are much less likely, but skier triggering has become only marginally less likely, on those aspects, and the sunny aspects that were Mod are now weakening by the day, and avys running on the ground (w/out an underlying layer of depth hoar), as the bed, are not implausible. We've seen one substantial crown on a due S aspect, well above treeline, above the Ophir Pass road.