Vail & Summit County
SnowpackJason Konigsberg · Nov 8, 2017 · Vail & Summit County
Weather
Wind was calm in the drainage.
Snowpack
Two to three inches of new snow did little to change the big picture in this part of the zone. Although the snowpack structure is poor on most northerly slopes, there is no slab to be found. Areas of the zone, such as around Loveland Pass, received closer to 10 inches of snow and southwest winds and there now exists a slab on top of faceted snow and the potential for human-triggered avalanches on northerly slopes.---In Crystal Creek (south Tenmile Range), I found a snow depth of about 30 cms on northerly slopes. The snowpack consists of a few inches of soft, new snow on top of a thin crust and then very weak faceted snow. There wasn't much snow on other slopes. Above treeline there was some coverage on high, east-facing slopes. On these slopes there is a melt-freeze crust that is hard and supportable to feet with faceted snow beneath.