Southern San Juan

Avalanche

Becs Hodgetts Matt Huber · Mar 7, 2022 · Southern San Juan

View on map

Weather

Steady winds and some periods of clearing during a mostly cloudy/obscured and snowy day.

Snowpack

Average HS near treeline 3m+. There was around 50cm of new snow with moderate to strong southwest winds forming small cornices and soft slabs on lee terrain features. Only very minor cracking was observed in these areas. A snowpit on a NW near treeline slope showed moderate compression test results (CTN16) about 10cm below the latest (3/4) dust layer. The same layer showed no propagation in an ECT test(ECTX). I would expect this trending stubborn instability to settle quickly once this stormy period ends. Southerly and southeasterly near and below treeline slopes had a supportive-to-skis crust 5-10cm thick below the recent storm snow. There were no signs of cracking, collapsing or sluffing on slopes up to 35 degrees on these aspects.

Avalanche

Near treeline on a northeast-facing slope, a skier intentionally triggered a small avalanche on a heavily drifted slope. The crown was roughly 50 meters across and about a meter in depth