Northern San Juan
AvalancheJeremy Yanko · Apr 7, 2022 · Northern San Juan
Weather
Crisp April day and still windy.
Snowpack
Traveled on predominantly easterly terrain from 10,600 to 13,100ft. It was a welcome change of conditions at the lower elevations where the surface was locked up into a pencil hard 5cm thick crust supportable to both skis and boot pen into the crust layer below during the morning and into mid afternoon. Even surfaces amongst the dense timber had benefited from the recent cool down and decent overnight freezes, which was nice. Working up in elevation offered a firm snowscape shorn by the wind, intense sun and the previous streak of very warm temperatures. The surface crust was weaker/thinner above 12k than the lower elevations, though offering good boot purchase on E/SE above a shallow layer of cold unconsolidated rounded grains below. Searched extensively for new wind-slabs and drifted pockets but were limited and unreactive in this area. Snow pit dug yielded hard CT results and no propagating snowpack test scores on a due East-facing planar slope @ ~12,900ft. Apart from 3 MFcr crust layers within the top 25cm, the slab above the 2/16-2/21 PWL is not dense and stout alike northerly aspects profiles visited recently. On the way out the surfaces were just starting to soften up on S/SE around 2pm and offered up some supportable pseudo-corn conditions.
Avalanche
Appeared that a Loose-Dry release initiated near the top of a steep east-facing ridgeline, then triggering a thin wind-slab that gouged two separate and deeper pockets in a cliff band further down.