Northern San Juan

Avalanche

Rebecca Hodgetts · Nov 28, 2023 · Northern San Juan

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Weather

Calm, clear skies, and 25F at 3 pm.

Snowpack

Average snow depth was ~50cm. The snowpack was entirely faceted, fist on the hand hardness scale. This slope sees very little direct sunlight during the winter. The bottom 10cm was 2-5mm depth hoar, and ground roughness broke up this layer somewhat. The two small avalanches released on 35+degree rolls near the top of the slope and ran on the ground.

Avalanche

Observed two small avalanches on a northerly near treeline slope which were triggered by skiers shortly after the Thanksgiving storm, on 35+degree rolls near the top of the slope. The avalanches ran on depth hoar at the ground.