Vail & Summit County

Avalanche

Kreston Rohrig · Feb 18, 2021 · Vail & Summit County

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Weather

Broken skies and chilly to start the day. I could see active wind-loading onto easterly aspects at higher elevations.

Snowpack

We stuck below treeline and dug a few pits on easterly aspects. For the most part, the snowpack has doubled since the end of January and is now a thick supportive slab sitting over weak facets and depth hoar. There was a notable crust below the new snow from warm temps at the end of last month. Multiple ECT scores ranged from low to high 20s, but still propagated on the weak facets below the Feb slabs. HS was around 120-140cm with the new snow and slab ranging from 60-70cm.

Avalanche

We got a better look at the Shrine avalanche. It's coded in a previous ob but was good size and ripped to the ground.