Front Range
AvalancheMichael Stolp-Smith · Dec 4, 2022 · Front Range
Weather
Periodic wind 10-20mph or so, partly cloudy, mid 20s
Snowpack
~92 cm depth @ 11,400, East facing aspect. Seemed fairly consistent based on the forecast. Performed a Compression test, which failed at a depth of 40cm (or 52 cm above the base of the snowpack), on the 4th tap. Break was clean. Performed 2 ECTs. First ECT test was an ECTP 13 and was inconclusive due to a slightly wrong column size. Was unsure if this invalidated, but is worth mentioning. On the second ECT we got an ECTN 13, with a weirdly shaped, but semi-clean plane that fully propagated with a couple more taps from the elbow. (P @ 15). The 3 elbow taps leading to the first failure and the following taps are in a video linked to this report. Ground layer did not seem reactive in testing, even with some pulling / abuse. It took effort to affect it in any material way, but this may be different on steeper slopes. Snowpack profile was similar to what has been seen elsewhere in the front range. There are shallow areas around some terrain, but in the area we dug the pit, it was generally a couple of slabs on top of a thin, unsupported crust, on top of a substantial layer of depth hoar. This base layer is certainly very weak and multiple inches thick. A measurement was not taken on site, but it was at least 3-4 inches if not more. Though we did not get reactivity, we were also lower down and ground angle/ anchors in our pit may have prevented behavior that could (and is) present elsewhere. This seemed like a snowpack primed for step-down slides.
Avalanche
No visible avalanches in the immediate vicinity (West side)