Northern San Juan
AvalancheTevis Nichols · Feb 23, 2022 · Northern San Juan
Weather
Periods of heavy snow and light to moderate winds varying from SW to N on the N aspect trees of Kendall mountain between 9400ft and 11,000ft
Snowpack
1-2 feet of new snow on top of near surface facets on sheltered NW aspect trees on Kendall Mountain between 9400ft and 11,000ft.
Avalanche
Multiple small slabs were easily triggered in NW aspect road cuts by probing into the near surface facets from below with a ski pole (see video). We remotely triggered a small slide from above, at a distance of roughly 10ft, on a NW aspect rollover near 11,000ft. We observed another small slab in a drainage that appeared to have been remotely triggered from below at a distance of roughly 10ft by a dog on the road also on a NW aspect. We remotely triggered a larger slide from above at a distance of roughly 150ft at an elevation of 9400ft on the lower NW slopes of Kendall Mountain. This slide broke in a small, steep gully, with a crown line roughly 300ft wide running along the NE aspect of the gully and then wrapping out of the gully to a NW aspect. It ran 100-150 vertical ft but was limited by the terrain. I estimate the crown line to be roughly 2ft, but conditions prevented us getting close enough to inspect it.