Aspen
AvalancheGreg Shaffran · Jan 14, 2016 · Aspen
Weather
1/11 was windy all day with moderate NW blowing snow observed. 1/12 was clear with moderate temps.
Snowpack
I toured up Little Italian late in the afternoon on 1/10 and observed a tremendous amount of variablity, from hip-deep facets, to mid-boot wind effect, to a thin breakable hard slab. Over the following days we found the best skiing near treeline in sheltered N-SE aspects. As we got lower into the treeline the snow became very weak and unsupportive, and when we got closer to treeline the snow surface was a hard wind slab.
Avalanche
On the morning of 1/11 observed a natural avalanche near treeline on an E aspect, on the steep slope just West of Opa Hut. The avalanche was a probably a couple days old at that point, and by the following day that crown was completely gone, and the path reloaded. The debris however, was still clearly visible. On 1/11 I triggered a small R1-D1-AS/c on a steep NE facing slope. The crown was approx. 2" thick and the wind slab propagated into chunks that were approx 1-1.5' wide.