Aspen

Snowpack

Matt Huber , Brandon Levy · Jan 26, 2020 · Aspen

Weather

The morning started off warm with clouds covering most of the sky. Skies began to clear by 12:00 and temperatures quickly rose and were in the low 40's by the time we made it back to the winter closure on Coal Creek. No blowing snow was visible on any ridgeline.

Snowpack

The overal supportiveness and feel of the snowpack is significantly improving with ski penetration generally less than 15 centimeters. The snowpack depth at 9700 feet on a north-facing slope is over 1.5 meters. We specifically targeted the January 8 interface, which is about 50 centimeters from the surface here, assessing reactivity and the presence of buried surface hoar (none was found). The sensitivity of this layer is noticeably decreasing, with compression tests producing hard, resistant planar results CT25 RP. The depth hoar is beginning to show signs of rounding. Snow surfaces on straight north aspects at this elevation remained dry at this elevation, but most other surfaces became moist and sticky by 1:30 likely forming a crust for tonights new snow to fall on