Northern San Juan
AvalancheJeff Davis · Mar 13, 2018 · Northern San Juan
Weather
Warm spring day. Temperatures hovered around freezing, but the strong sun made it feel even warmer. Winds were light with few clouds.
Snowpack
Northerly slopes above treeline remain cold and the snow surface firm. In shallow pockets of dry snow surface hoar grew overnight. The snowpack is changing rapidly on southerly slopes under ample sunshine and warm temperatures. Many sunny slopes are shallow in general. A firm melt-freeze crust capped rounded polycrystals at upper elevations where the snowpack was only a foot or so deep. The crust was breaking down during the day. At lower elevations, the snowpack is melting away quickly and has transitioned into spring. Cracking observed in the melt-freeze crust, but just the length of your skis. No cracking on Northerly slopes and No whumpfing observed.
Avalanche
Wet avalanches observed out of steep sunny slopes. Estimated from 3/12/18