Northern San Juan
Quick reportJulia Vorsteveld Chris Dickson · Jan 20, 2026 · Northern San Juan
Weather
Light winds out of the north-west, temperatures in the low 30s, clear skies.
Snowpack
Snowpack is shallow and heavily wind-affected. Below tree-line on N and NE slopes, surfaces varied in spans of a few feet to having a wind crust to soft snow. Near treeline in a test pit, at 11870' on a NE slope, we found well-developed facets sitting below and above New Year's and Christmas crusts. These crusts, however, have significantly deteriorated, meaning they are much softer due to faceting. In a compression test, results were CT12 with failure near the bottom of the snowpack, and in an extended column test, we had no results (ECTX).
Avalanche
Evidence of natural avalanches from the 1/16 wind event. Mostly on northeast-facing slopes above treeline.