Front Range
AvalancheAnonymous · Mar 10, 2018 · Front Range
Weather
Mostly cloudy with intermittent S-1, though starting around noon, snow precipitation increased somewhat and was consistent till the end of our tour at 1500h. Temps were cool below treeline though cold at treeline with windchill. Light to Moderate and variable winds below treeline on our skin up the East slopes, but at treeline and on N slopes above Dry Gulch steady Moderate winds from the W. Total HN estimated by the end of the tour at 1500h 4". Significant wind loading observed and estimating multiplier of 3.
Snowpack
At/below treeline on S-E we found a mostly supportive melt-freeze crust. Underneath mostly faceted layers. On NE-N this crust is not present, the top few inches are very soft, creamy DF's. The P hard old snow was often felt both skinning up and skiing. Below treeline, much of the colder aspects consists of mostly facets. At/above treeline, soft windslab has formed, estimating up to 15' deep. These became slabier throughout the day but no shooting cracks observed. We avoided slopes >35dgr for both wind slab and persistent slab management. With tomorrow's sun and warming temps, I expect these windslabs to become more sensitive (specific, possible, D1-2), but stabilizing by Wed. No snowpack tests performed, occasional slope test produced no results.
Avalanche
None observed, no instability signs observed.