Vail & Summit County
SnowpackAndrew McWilliams · Feb 8, 2024 · Vail & Summit County
Weather
On and off light snow showers and moderate winds from the northwest. Temperatures were in the teens and low twenties. No accumulation while I was in the field.
Snowpack
I observed the February 2nd buried surface hoar layer on sheltered slopes that faced west to north through east. Southerly-facing slopes at low elevations had a thick and supportable 3cm melt-freeze crust. I dug a snowpit near the ridge line on a north and northeast slope. There was a layer of softer, faceted grains beneath the most recent drifted snow about 30cm from the surface. This was likely the weak surface buried on February 2nd, but there was no intact surface hoar in this wind-affected location. The most recent drift was supportable to ski and boot travel. Cracking in the newest wind load was minimal and I had to jump and push to get cracks to form, these cracks did not extend much beyond the length of my skis. On a steeper slope near my snowpit was a recent avalanche that ran full path and was large in size. The crown and bed surface were somewhat blown in with recent snow, but it appeared to fail at the new/old interface and then broke to the ground in some places. My snowpit confirmed this situation, with failures at the new/old interface and in the basal facet layer. About 500 vertical feet below the ridge, the buried surface hoar layer was easily spotted with the naked eye about 30cm below the surface. Where I found the buried surface hoar layer intact, there was not a dense slab resting above it. Where I dug near the ridge, there was a dense slab, but no intact surface hoar. Given the avalanche near my pit, the weak layer buried on February 2nd and the depth hoar interface are weak layers of concern in this area. In this windy location, snow depths varied from areas with less than 60cm of snow and areas with drifted areas with more than 150cm. Average depths were closer to a meter.