Sawatch
SnowpackDrew Gibson · Jan 3, 2024 · Sawatch
Weather
Light swirling winds, warm and mostly clear with some passing thin clouds.
Snowpack
Intermittent snow cover on most slopes, isolated to previously wind-loaded terrain features. Snow surfaces near and above treeline were variable. Some were harshly wind-decayed and others buffed smooth. Wind-sheltered slopes near treeline had less than 40cm of unsupportive snow. While digging in a few near treeline areas on northeast and east aspects, I found on average 60cm of snow with highly variable structure. In some places, the snowpack was most unsupportive facets capped with a pencil-hard, wind-packed surface. In other places, it was comprised of thick, very hard, layers of wind-hardened snow sitting directly on the ground. There is evidence of some of these layers breaking down, but it is taking its time. Between the variability of layers and the sporadic snow cover, it would take feet of snow to connect slopes and weak layers outside of the small loaded pockets. Looking into drainages more north towards Hoosier Pass, snow cover looks more regular with some wind-loaded slopes looking more connected.