Northern San Juan

Avalanche

Skippie Zeller · Feb 21, 2021 · Northern San Juan

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Weather

We, local observers, believe this slide ran sometime during the early hours of Wednesday, the 17th. That was the during the ending of our last significant snowfall. The ridge is north-south trending and receives significant wind loading from the NW-W-SW.

Snowpack

The Rico area had received generally less snow per storm early season, than other North Juan Mountains. Consequentially, the impact of faceting following each storm was magnified. Once the local snow pack began to accumulate, it began to build a wind slab.

Avalanche

ENE aspects, 35+ degrees, elevation 12,000', 20210217, HS-N-R5-D4-G, slab 8-12 feet thick, width 1200', length 1200'+. All measurements are estimated.