Vail & Summit County

Avalanche

American Avalanche Institute · Feb 22, 2016 · Vail & Summit County

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Weather

Winds were calm to light. Sky was overcast. Snowing very, very, very lightly. Wind slab above treeline was pencil to knife hard and of varying thickness…from 3 cm to 30 cm. Not propagating or reactive to skiing.

Snowpack

We toured up Mayflower Gulch today…2 groups up there, digging several pits, etc.. We got a collapse on facets/depth hoar 60-70 cm down, just below the parking lot. 12 m crack. 41 degree slope that didn’t move. Dug a few pits below tree line (11200). Layer of concern was facets/depth hoar 50-70 cm down. Consistent ECTP results. Low to Moderate Strength, Poor Structure - 4-5 Lemons, Propagation on ECTs and 30-40 cm cut lengths on PSTs. We also dug at tree line, above Boston Mine. HS 110-140. Layers of concern = depth hoar (20-30 cm at bottom), mid-pack facets - 40-50 cm down. Moderate to high strength, poor structure (4-5 lemons), propagation in many, but not all pits.

Avalanche

No avalanche activity observed.