Sawatch
AvalancheJason Konigsberg · Mar 16, 2024 · Sawatch
Weather
Thicker clouds in the morning. Less clouds cover in the afternoon. t got really warm when the sun came out. Snow surfaces were getting moist. When the sun wasn't out it was cold and blustery at ridgetop.
Snowpack
The snowpack below treeline is about 1 meter deep. The top half is composed of a thick slab from snowfall over the last month. The bottom half is weak faceted snow. The snowpack is supportable to skis with about 6 inches ski pen while boot pen is to the ground. Near treeline the snowpack is about 120 to 130 cm deep. I got an ECTP22 on large-grained facets and depth hoar 35 cm from the ground. Above treeline the snow surface is hard on most aspects. Northwest-facing slopes look the most loaded with tiger-striping of snow on many other aspects.
Avalanche
It was hard to see the extent of avalanche activity with the light and also due to recent drifting covering crowns. I could make out a few smallism debris piles on westerly slopes, but nothing looked bigger than D2.