Sangre de Cristo
AvalancheAnonymous · Feb 18, 2018 · Sangre de Cristo
Weather
Very strong (sustained 25 mph gusting to 60+ mph) wind from west and north, perfectly clear skies, substantial amount of blowing snow above treeline.
Snowpack
Valley floor in South Colony Creek at 9 to 10k elevation is filled with 8-16 inches of powdery snow. East facing slopes 10k to 11k below treeline are significantly deeper and generally unconsolidated--postholing knee deep with snowshoes. East facing slopes near treeline (11.8k on Humboldt's east ridge) significantly wind loaded--observed occasional propagation of shooting cracks on low angle slopes when snowshoeing. Above treeline, the snow is highly variable--most slopes above treeline seem to have very little snow, with gullies holding the most as expected. South and east aspects were generally the snowiest.
Avalanche
none observed