Aspen
AvalancheBrian Lazar · Apr 7, 2023 · Gunnison
Weather
Warm, sunny, with only a light cool breeze along the ridgeline.
Snowpack
Recent storm is settling and cooking down more than producing a pronounced cycle of shedding off the underlying crust. The weak layer of concern is a crust-facet combination about 2 feet deep, but the facets are rounding and seem unreactive. The dust layer is buried about 8 inches deep on upper elevations and wind-loaded slopes, but is starting to surface on lower-elevation slopes and and south-facing terrain. Things will change quickly when the dust surfaces under the strong April sun. There are isolated slopes to avoid, limited to steep (over 35 degrees) slopes underneath overhanging cornices. Some of the cornices are large enough to get avalanches to break on the crust-facet layer, like the observed avalanche near Ragged Mtn. These very large triggers could get avalanche to break even deep on the March 10 crust which is around 4 feet deep in this area.
Avalanche
Witnessed one large recent avalanche near Ragged Mtn. From a distance, it appears that cornice fall likely triggered this slide. The avalanche ran on a northeast-facing slope in the alpine in the last day or two.