Southern San Juan
AvalancheChris Bilbrey · Feb 22, 2023 · Southern San Juan
Weather
Heavy snow and violent southwest wind. Gusts were strong enough to create micro-eddy-like upsloping on easterly-facing slopes below the treeline.
Snowpack
We found about 40 cm of new snow around 9,800 feet. Lots of wind-affected snow below the treeline with a Styrofoam feel near ridgelines. Wind-drifted swells up to 2 feet thick had formed in broader openings in the trees. Traveling on slopes slightly steeper than about 30 degrees, we began to see cracks in the storm snow along our skin track. None traveled outward but was evidence the new snow was cohesive enough to produce avalanche flow if in steeper terrain.
Avalanche
Descending low 30-ish degrees slopes, we triggered a few wind-drifted pockets, dinner table size, that did not move down the slope - mostly cracked around our skis.