Aspen
AvalancheDylan Craaybeek · Jan 3, 2022 · Aspen
Weather
Temperature inversion for most of the day. Above 11,000ft. was low 20s while the valley floor was low to mid teens. The sky had Few clouds increasing to Scattered throughout the day but still sunny for the duration of my fieldwork. Winds were Moderate up to the Baldy Ridgeline then Strong gusting Extreme by noon above 12,000 feet. Several gusts nearly knocked me off of my feet, lifted 3 to 5 foot wide, thin slabs of snow dozens of feet in the air, and sent baseball ball sized rocks rolling downhill. Most fetches were largely stripped of snow but there was still Intense wind loading on Baldy. Moderate ridgeline snow transport observed on nearby peaks and ridgelines.
Snowpack
Northerly and westerly slopes above the treeline on Baldy were stripped to the ground with isolated wind slabs on cross-loaded terrain features. Most of this snow must have been transported into West Willow Creek as the average HS for much of the drainage was greater than 2 meters. Average ski penetrations remained around 25cm throughout the drainage with a 1-1.5m 1F to P hard slab resting on 4F to F hard facets underneath. Southerly aspects developed a Melt-Freeze crust yesterday and today about 1-2cm thick and P hard. The snow surface on shaded aspects developed Near-Surface Facets since the end of the last storm with very cold night time temperatures.
Avalanche
Observed a few old avalanches above East Snowmass Creek along the Garrett-Willoughby ridgeline.