Sawatch

Snowpack

Jason Konigsberg, Jeff Davis · Dec 3, 2017 · Sawatch

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Weather

We didn't gain the ridge but winds were at least moderate at ridgetop. There was no evidence of drifting snow.

Snowpack

The snow surface was faceted in most areas except those where the surface was a wind-packed hard slab. We dug in one near treeline location and found a faceted slab with very weak snow underneath. The decomposing slab was about 10 inches thick followed by a few inches of faceted snow, a thin crust, and then weak depth hoar near the ground.