Sawatch
AvalancheRich Rogers · Dec 24, 2023 · Sawatch
Weather
Broken cloud cover with frequent bursts of snowfall. <1cm-2cm/hr. Might have picked up another 1-2" from mid morning to early afternoon. Temps in the mid to high 20's. NW winds were light to moderate at times when snowfall rates increase but otherwise calm.
Snowpack
Across the area, Stepping out and off of skis meant post holing close to the ground from boot top-almost mid thigh depending on total depth. Shaded, SE slopes, less than 30º, @ 11,270 ft, persistent slab structure is present where the snow depth is more than 30cm(65cm max). Most of these slabs have slowly, but not completely, deteriorated over the recent dry spell, and are still firm enough to communicate failures. This was verified with snowpack tests with easy to moderate snowpack test scores along with propagation on or near old, faceted, Oct. and mid Nov. snow. In shallower, open areas on SE and S, hard crusts would only break when, forcefully, stomped on. Below those crusts, laid old weak snow that would run through your hand when picked up. On a shaded easterly slope, less than 30º, @ 11,460, persistent slab structure is still present and total depth was ~78cm. At this location, slabs were "one finger" hard using the hand hardness scale. With softer layers above and sandwiched below. I also found two non-reactive layers of buried surface hoar in the upper third of the snowpack. Again, snowpack test scores were easy to moderate with propagation, but failures were deeper, than SE slopes, and few centimeters above an old "pencil" hard melt freeze crust that has strong but large faceted grains sitting above large chained depth hoar to the ground.
Avalanche
Lower Denny creek, N, BTL, steep rocky scree field, looks a few weeks old and partial filled in.