Vail & Summit County

Snowpack

Mike Floyd · Dec 16, 2020 · Vail & Summit County

Weather

Light snow with two inches of low-density snow falling during my three hour tour. Light winds below treeline, above treeline moderate 10-20 mph out of the west gusting into the 40s with periods of whiteout conditions at ridgetop. There is low density snow available for transport, and exposed areas above treeline were robbed of the new snow as quickly as it fell. A nice winter day.

Snowpack

The snowpack is weak across all aspects and elevations. East-facing slopes above treeline have 50-90 cm of snow. This is capped with a new wind slab that is reactive in stability tests. The middle snowpack has a thick layer of cohesive faceted snow. This sits on top of facets down to depth hoar at the ground. I dug my pit where I triggered a whumpf (see pit details). Multiple stability tests resulted in propagating fractures at the basal depth hoar layer. Small sluffs of new snow were observed on steep easterly slopes near and above treeline. Near treeline snow depths on west through south and southeast were around 40-70 cm with some mid and lower pack crusts with facets above and below. Wind loading was localized to specific terrain features at this elevation.