Location: Crested Butte Area
Date of Observation: 03/03/2019
Name: AIARE 2

Subject: Coneys Glades
Aspect: North East
Elevation: 9,600-10,300

Avalanches:

NO

Weather: 2-S5 all day ~4in of accumulation with Mod winds from the W, a few strong gusts
Snow falling was mostly PPrm, almost grapple at points
Colder today and snow until 1500 was low density, especially compared to the previous 2 days
Sky – OBS
TAir – 28deg

Snowpack: Pen Ski – avg 30cm
Pen Boot – Crotch (didn’t stop until then, would have gone further)
Snow was deep for sure, and we could feel the denser settled snow from Fri, below the fresher snow from the last 48hrs, breaking through and while stiffening, not supper supportable yet in this area. Localized collapsing
Pits dug at 10300ft on a NE facing aspect in an open meadow BTL- ~150cm depth of pit on avg.
50-70cm of new snow F harness gaining strength near the bottom of the layer
80-100cm of 4F-1F slab that seems to be uniform with a small interface 50-60cm down from the new snow

CT18 Q2 RP Down 55cm
CTN
CTM Q2 RP Down 80cm
ECTN down 35cm
ECTN down 55cm and 95cm
ECTP16 down 80cm (new/old snow interface)
Photos:

Location: Paradise Divide Area
Date of Observation: 03/03/2019
Name: Billy Barr

Subject: Gothic 7am Weather Update
Aspect:
Elevation:

Avalanches:

Weather: Obscured with steady moderate to heavy snow with only a slight pause between 1-2 pm yesterday, but also very dense as this whole storm cycle has been. The last 24 hours has 14″ new snow with 1.19″ of water. Total storm so far 31½” of snow with 2.68″ of water, or 8½% water, which in a sustained and large storm is a rarity. Current snowpack is at winters deepest of 81″. Thankfully only light wind with currently moderate snowfall. Temp. stays mild with the morning low of 22F the coolest in 4 days.

Snowpack:
Photos:

Location: Crested Butte Area
Date of Observation: 03/02/2019
Name: AIARE 2

Subject: Red Lady Glades
Aspect: South East
Elevation: 11,200ft

Avalanches:

NO

Weather: Sky – OVC becoming OBS after 1400
Wind – Light out of the WSW
Precip – S-1 in the morning, S2 after 1400, PPrm. S5 after 1500, lots of moisture
-2.6C at 11,200 at 1400 (moderate, close to feeding temps all day)
2-3in of new snow observed

Snowpack: HS-245cm
HST – 40cm
TAir – -2.6C
TSurf – -1.6C
T20 – 3.4C
140cm down (bottom of pit) -3.9C
0cm (Surf)-40cm – F, DF and a small amount of GRpl 3mm
40cm-45cm – 4F MFcr , CT19/M Q1 SP, ECTN
45cm-55cm – 1F RG .5mm
55-cm-70cm – 1F RG .5mm
70-72cm – MFcr CT29/H Q2 SP
72-100 – P, RG – .3mm
100-140cm – P, RG .3mmnow density decreased as we climbed in elevation
Evidence of settlement BTL, snow cones around trees
~14in of new snow over the last 24hrs on average in this terrain
Photos:

Location: Crested Butte Area
Date of Observation: 03/02/2019
Name: billy bar

Subject: Gothic 7am Report

Weather: Light to moderate snow Friday until stopping mid afternoon. Then starting up around sunset light to moderate before becoming off and on around midnight. A warm, dense snow with 10″ new and water content of 0.85″. Warm with the temperature range from 25-30F. Currently obscured with moderate to strong W wind and light snowfall at 28F. Snowpack is at winters deepest of 71½”.

Location: Kebler Pass Area
Date of Observation: 03/02/2019
Name: Irwin Cat Operation

Subject: Irwin Cat OperationCat Operation

Weather: Low cloud layer and strong SSW gusts kept visibility to a minimum, difficult visibility kept us off the higher elevation drops all morning. S5 snowfall rates all morning. We picked up another 10″ on the
H2D by 12:30. And although it is gusting, I believe those are real time totals. Precip ended around 1300 and skies were OVC.

We picked up HST 15 with 1.55″ SWE since 2/28. Felt maritime. 10″ from 8:00-12:00pm

Snowpack: Ski pen averaged 15cm. Only observations were underfoot as there was no surrounding visibility. Snow came in high density. At some point, probably early AM there was a graupel event and can see those “ball bearings” on the 2/28 crust, in some places they rolled down into the convexities, and can only detect in hand shears after digging below storm slab. Surprisingly minimal cracking or sloughing. The winds have been raging though and I believe we will see this slab stiffen up sooner then later. NTL/BTL West and protected south still had good ski pen, Exposed south was minimal, 5cms or so.

Location: Crested Butte Area
Date of Observation: 03/01/2019
Name: Evan Ross

Subject: ~12″ HST, Loose Snow And Soft Slab Avalanches. Axtell
Aspect: North, East
Elevation: 9,500-11,500

Avalanches:

The 12″ soft slabs triggered on easterly aspects and sluffing on northerly aspects were mostly in the D1.5 range. The two D2’s that were ski cut today where both on easterly aspects, with 12″ crowns and 20-40ft in width, accumulating volume as they ran far through steep terrain.

Weather: Great pulse of snow between about 9:30am and noon. During that same time westerly winds were transporting snow onto lee terrain feathers. The afternoon was quiet, snow turned off and winds eased in this location.

Snowpack: HST was sitting around 12″. This new snow was sluffing in the steep 40 degree terrain we traveled. There was very little to no propagation as a slab on northerly aspects where the new snow was sitting above some small NSF. The new snow was sitting on crusts on more easterly terrain, and here ski cuts produced soft slabs at the interface generally up to 20ft in with.

The terrain we traveled included the near treeline elevation and lee aspects. There was some wind loading but this area was generally sheltered from the active wind-loading out there today.

Photos:

Easterly Aspect at 11,400ft. Ski cut triggered 12″ soft slab running on the 2/28 crust.

Location: Crested Butte Area
Date of Observation: 03/01/2019

Subject: Snodgrass Lower Slopes
Aspect: North East, East
Elevation: 10000

Weather: Wind L – WSW
Sky – OVC
TAir -1.7C
TSurf -10C
T20 -3.5C
S-1, then no snow
Around 1430 small amounts of grauple started to precipitate S-1

Snowpack: HS-190cm
HST – 42cm
Fist hard new snow layer
31cm of 4f below that (Valentines Day Slab?)
23cm of 1f – early Feb slab
1-2cm of 4f (interface between MLK and early feb)
25cm – MLK slab 1f
70cm-ground was F harness, basal facets near willows

1 Column Test – CTN
Outside of >10in of new snow, no other red flag observations made in this zone

Location: Paradise Divide Area
Date of Observation: 03/01/2019
Name: Than

Subject: Vomitous
Aspect: North, North East
Elevation: BTL

Avalanches:

Observed lots of storm snow activity on NE slopes in the 40-degree range with a sustained pitch to them. Nothing moving where we skied.

Weather: mid-20s and snowing 1-2″ per hour

Snowpack: 12 inches new when we got out there and probably 16+ inches new when we left with a short burst of grauple thrown in there. Lightish and not slabbing up yet. Snowmobiling in and out of there was unsane.