Southern San Juan
AvalancheChris Bilbrey · Nov 21, 2019 · Southern San Juan
Weather
A mix of sun and clouds. Felt like winter for the first time this fall.
Snowpack
The La Plata Mountains received some much-needed precipitation. This had been the driest portion of the South San Juan zone before this storm. Enough weak, faceted snow lingered through the two weeks of high pressure and is found on north and northeast-facing slopes. Stability, at the moment, is much different on slopes with old snow vs slopes without (bare ground below storm snow). Up to 15 inches of dense, new snow accumulated with wind-drifted areas most likely over two feet near and above treeline. We only climbed up to 11,000 feet. We observed lots of shooting cracks and audible collapses where the old snow rest below recent storm snow. The first Extended Column Test produced a failure on isolation and the second test failed on the third tap (ECTP3). We observed no signs of instability on southerly-facing slopes. Despite a healthy dose of snowfall, coverage remains thin - tread lightly to avoid an early season mishap.
Avalanche
None observed