Gunnison
SnowpackCrested Butte Avalanche Center · Feb 11, 2013 · Gunnison
Weather
Went up at 10:15 under mixed skies, little wind, and warming temps.
Snowpack
Got to ridgeline and dug a pit. New snow = 8-10 cm. Snow depth = 150 cm (which may be deeper than other areas due to windloading near ridgeline), with a very solid midpack, but still holding very sugary facets on the ground up to 20 cm. ECT = 22 with a Q3 shear at 110 cm from the ground. The isolated column was 'shaking' with each strike, but no shear results seen until striking from the shoulder. Shovel shear and propagation tests indicated a strong midpack. Stepping on the pit from above showed a break in the snow about 110 from the ground as well (the top 40 cm of the snow shook loose). Soft snow on NE slopes in the mid- to upper-30 degree range with no instability. On more southerly slopes down lower, there was a zipper crust, with a few new cm of snow. No avalanche activity observed on our tour.