Southern San Juan
SnowpackMatt Huber · Feb 17, 2022 · Southern San Juan
Weather
A few clouds in the sky, just enough to delay the sun from cooking the new, low-density snow into a sticky mess until mid-afternoon. Winds were light during the trip with no blowing snow visible, evidence of prior drifting could be found on northeast facing slopes near treeline.
Snowpack
With the exception of small, loose dry avalanches on cold, north-facing slopes, the five inches of new snow had little affect on current avalanche concerns near and below treeline. On aspects that saw even minimal sunshine, the new snow settled and bonded to the old snow surface quickly. Cold shady slopes were still producing small surface sluffs mid-afternoon as I was leaving. These will likely facet quickly and may be problematic for the upcoming storm The 2/3 buried facet layer is unreactive but still visible.