Location: Crested Butte Area
Date of Observation: 01/04/2020
Name: Evan Ross
Subject: COBC AIARE 2
Aspect: North East
Elevation: 9,500-10,500
Avalanches: On Gothic Mountain, several small loose snow avalanches ran out of steep south facing slopes near rock bands.
Weather: Most significant weather was the warm temps and increasing winds in the afternoon. We didn’t pop above ridgline until late afternoon, right when the winds seemed to increase from the west south west. Large snow plums could be seen off the high peaks.
Snowpack: At lower elevations, the HS was around 90cm’s with no concerning Persistent Slab structure left in the snowpack. Thin and firm wind slabs could be seen on the cross-loaded terrain at these lower elevations. As we climbed we chose to avoid several cross-loaded terrain features, mostly due to the increased HS and lingering potential persistent slab structure. As we moved higher the HS also increased and we found a better strong over weak structure. This persistent slab avalanche problem appeared to be either stubborn or unreactive to human triggering in the terrain. At 10,400ft near ridgeline. HS was 140cm. CT and ECT column tests didn’t produce results in the mid to upper snowpack at this location. The depth hoar at the bottom of the snowpack was too deep for these particular column tests.
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