Aspen

Avalanche

Colin Mitchell · Nov 17, 2014 · Aspen

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Weather

Clear and cool. Temps rose from -8C degrees at the start of my tour to near zero in the afternoon. Winds were calm in the morning but were light from the NW by 1300.

Snowpack

Average snow depth ranged from 15-25 cm depending on aspect and exposure to the sun. Sunny areas had 0-15 and shaded and north facing aspects had 15-25. The snow was beginning to facet. The old snow layer was intermittent and hard to find. Faceting of last weeks snow will likely continue this week and probably render the old snow layer largely indistinguishable from the newer snow.

Avalanche

Hard to tell the full extent of this avalanche, or how far it ran as the slope was very shaded and distant, and the visibility poor. The crown looked to be around 2' deep and was plainly visible with binoculars.