Front Range
AvalancheJason Konigsberg · Mar 29, 2025 · Front Range
Snowpack
Below treeline, the snowpack was supportable in open areas. There is a soft, one-inch thick, melt-freeze crust beneath the new snow and wet to moist layers underneath with intermixed ice bodies. The snowpack was less supportable in tight trees with ski pen about 30 cm. Although I found a less supportable snowpack in some areas, when pushing on the snow around steep terrain, just the top few inches of moist snow rollerballed, not entraining any older snow beneath. Near and above treeline I traveled on east through southeast-facing slopes and found a thick, impenetrable crust below the new snow. The crust stayed intact throughout the day. The new snow got moist as the sun appeared in the morning. I didn't experience any major rollerball activity, but with how the snow felt, I think I would have been able to trigger small wet avalanches in the new snow on sheltered and very steep east and southeast-facing slopes. Other observations from around the Northern Mountains show this to be the case. The only thicker wind drifts I found were just below the leeward side of ridges. I triggered a tiny Wind Slab avalanche that ran far for how small the slab was, as it entrained the new snow down the slope. Once down 100 vertical feet from the ridge, the snow was slightly wind-affected and cohesive but not deeply drifted. I didn't experience any signs of instability midslope. The new snow was settling and baking down in the warm sun. The new snow volume will be nearly half what it was on Sunday from Saturday, leaving only a few inches on stout melt-freeze crusts.
Avalanche
I triggered one small Wind Slab avalanche. Notable was the lack of avalanche activity around Loveland Pass. There were some small loose snow avalanches out of the steepest and rockiest terrain. I thought I may see some rollerballs out of low-elevation northerly terrain towards the bottom of the pass, but I did not.