Location: Kebler Pass Area
Date of Observation: 01/13/2020
Name: Sam
Subject: Human triggered avalanche
Aspect: North East
Avalanches: Triggered small pocket on steep wind loaded roll, broke as a slab in the storm snow but ran as loose dry sluff
Weather: Cold, snowy, windy. Snowed roughly two inches through out day, heavy winds from north west actively loading throughout the day.
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Location: Kebler Pass Area
Date of Observation: 01/13/2020
Name: MR
Subject: anthracites storm instabilities
Aspect: North, North East
Elevation: 11,000
Avalanches: See photo. Looked to be skier triggered. On the bottom steep roll skier’s right at the bottom of big chute where it tends to do that. R1D1 soft storm slab. The storm snow in the middle of big chute had also run when we got there, presumably triggered by the first skiers as well. No other propagating avalanches observed but plenty of cracking and stuffing in the storm snow.
Weather: Blowing, snowing, and cold all day.
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Location: Kebler Pass Area
Date of Observation: 01/13/2020
Name: Eric Murrow & Zach Kinler
Subject: Anthracites Storm Check and Touchy Surface Hoar Layer
Aspect: North, North East, East
Elevation: 9,200′ – 10600′
Avalanches: Visibility was poor looking into alpine terrain but spotted several small slabs on easterly facing terrain below treeline, D1’s. Intentionally triggered a Persistent Slab avalanche on a NE facing slope at 10600′ on a buried surface hoar layer, D1.5.
Weather: We spent the afternoon out Kebler Pass from 130pm until 4pm. During this time winds had relaxed blowing only lightly below treeline but evidence of strong winds was obvious from early in the day. Snowfall was generally light with 3/4″ accumulation from 2pm to 4pm. Skies were often obscured and mostly cloudy.
Snowpack: We poked a hole on a NE facing slope at 10600′ at the Anthracites and found HS ~210cm. It was a little difficult identifying snowfall from the past 24 hours but as of 330pm it looked like 36cm (~15″) with .65″SWE….ya it was pretty blower. During test profile an obvious Surface Hoar stripe was found 70cm down (suspect this layer was buried on the evening of 1/8), results on this layer were ECTP 13 with the slab sliding off the weak layer into the pit “cash register style”. We found a small adjacent slope and walked above it and, without any effort other than approaching, remotely triggered an avalanche on this layer.
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Date: 01/13/2020
Yesterday and last night brought another 1″ to 4″ across the forecast area with snow still accumulating. Winds have been blowing at moderate speeds with strong gusts for the past 24 hours from the west and southwest. Snow production will remain steady through the early afternoon with an additional 2 to 8 inches expected across the forecast area. Snowfall rates are expected to be strongest between breakfast and lunch today. The flow is currently SW which will keep snow totals largest in areas to the west and northwest of town and lesser amounts to the east. Winds will remain elevated, especially during peak precipitation, from the southwest and will transport a significant amount of snow near and above treeline. Snowfall should begin tapering off in the early afternoon but light snow/flurries will likely linger through this evening and into tomorrow for areas to the west and north of town.
A weak system is expected to brush by northern Colorado on Tuesday but will offer little accumulations for the Crested Butte area. A stronger system looks to arrive at the end of the week sometime late Thursday or Friday. We will keep ya posted.
High Temperature: 13 to 17
Winds/Direction: 13 to 23, G40 SW
Sky Cover: Overcast
Irwin Snow: 5 to 8″
Elkton Snow: 5 to 8″
Friend’s Hut Snow: 3 to 5″
Low Temperature: 2 to 6
Winds/Direction: 10 to 20, W
Sky Cover: Partly Cloudy
Irwin Snow: 0 to 1″
Elkton Snow: 0 to 1″
Friend’s Hut Snow: 0 to 1″
High Temperature: 21 to 25
Winds/Direction: 10 to 20, SW
Sky Cover: Partly Cloudy
Irwin Snow: 0
Elkton Snow: 0
Friend’s Hut Snow: 0
Location: Paradise Divide Area
Date of Observation: 01/12/2020
Name: Eric Murrow and Zach Kinler
Subject: Paradise Divide
Aspect: South East, South, South West
Elevation: 10,800′-12,600′
Avalanches: No new avalanches observed
Weather: Coldest I’ve felt all year, temps in single digits. Broken to overcast skies, moderate westerly winds with stronger gusts, S-1 started around 15:00.
Snowpack: Generally 5″ of settled snow from our incremental event starting late on 1/8 in near treeline terrain. This new snow sits on a variety of old surfaces from stiff windboard to crusts in steeper open terrain on this sunny side of the compass. Crusts at 1/8 interface on SE are thin and resting on very weak faceted snow. Winds were moving snow onto leeward and cross-loaded features with drifts up to a foot observed on certain E-SE slopes. Fresh cornice formation on many ridgelines and cross-loaded ribs. Cracks in drifted snow up to 10 or so feet on small drifted easterly features. These slabs will continue to build as we add more snow and lots of wind tomorrow.
Photos
Date: 01/12/2020
As of 5am, up to 2″ of new snow accumulated since yesterday afternoon. The slow trickle of snow will continue into this morning before a brief lull around midday. The next wave of moisture will start to impact the area late afternoon with the heaviest precipitation expected early AM on Monday morning into the middle part of the day. Last night’s and today’s trickle combined with a healthy shot of snow early tomorrow will generate respectable totals by sunset on Monday with favored locations around Kebler Pass and Schofield Pass pushing near or even past the 12″ mark with lesser amounts closer to town. Westerly winds during this period will be strong enough to redistribute the new snow at mid and upper elevations.
The first part of Tuesday will offer drier conditions, but flurries may linger, before another trough impacts the area on Tuesday evening and into Wednesday. Models are also showing continued moisture for the second half of the week, so stay tuned.
High Temperature: 9 to 13
Winds/Direction: 10 to 20, G30 W
Sky Cover: Mostly Cloudy
Irwin Snow: 1 to 3″
Elkton Snow: 1 to 3″
Friend’s Hut Snow: 1 to 3″
Low Temperature: 2 to 6
Winds/Direction: 10 to 20, SW
Sky Cover: Overcast
Irwin Snow: 3 to 5″
Elkton Snow: 3 to 5″
Friend’s Hut Snow: 2 to 4″
High Temperature: 12 to 16
Winds/Direction: 15 to 25, G45 W
Sky Cover: Overcast
Irwin Snow: 6 to 9″
Elkton Snow: 6 to 9″
Friend’s Hut Snow: 5 to 7″
Location: Crested Butte Area
Date of Observation: 01/11/2020
Subject: Anthracite Mesa-Coneys
Aspect: North East, East
Elevation: BTL
Avalanches:Â Just saw 3 R1 D0.5 hard slab avalanches in the neighborhood, which looked like they occurred over a week ago.
Weather: calm, obstructed skies, and cold with air temperature less than 10 degrees F.
Snowpack: no instabilities observed on and off skin track. between 4 and 6 inches of new snow and 8 inches in a favorable area within past 48 hours. one probe at ridge top revealed a depth of 120 cm.
Date: 01/11/2020
Brr…-19 in Crested Butte, but fear not, upper elevations have warmed over the last few hours and are generally above zero to greet those hearty early birds. Snow should kick off towards sunset today across most of our forecast area, though the highest terrain may see snow develop a bit earlier. Snow will continue throughout the evening and linger into Monday with periods of heavier snow showers and lulls with partial clearing between waves of moisture riding a large scale low-pressure trough across the western United States. There will be increased westerly winds ushering in this legitimate pattern shift to a more active, snowy pattern for the rest of the weekend and week ahead today. Temperatures should remain cold today, with highs in the low teens. Watch that exposed skin as wind chills will be making it feel closer to -10 to -20ºF.
High Temperature: 10-15
Winds/Direction: 15-25/WNW G40
Sky Cover: Increasing clouds
Irwin Snow: 0-2″
Elkton Snow: 0-2″
Friend’s Hut Snow: 0-2″
Low Temperature: 0-5
Winds/Direction: 10-20/NW
Sky Cover: Mostly Cloudy
Irwin Snow: 2-5″
Elkton Snow: 2-5″
Friend’s Hut Snow: 1-3″
High Temperature: 15-20
Winds/Direction: 10-20/NW
Sky Cover: Mostly Cloudy
Irwin Snow: 2-4″
Elkton Snow: 2-4″
Friend’s Hut Snow: 2-4″
Location: Kebler Pass Area
Date of Observation: 01/10/2020
Subject: Small Storm Slab Axtel 1st bowl
Aspect: North East, East
Elevation: 10500′
Avalanches:
Small storm slab broke while traversing left through small trees on a mid-lower slope in 1st bowl on Axtel. Crown about 8 inches. R1D1. Relatively small but ran into thick small trees. Rocky bed surface, probably shallower snowpack and more East facing. About 10meters wide, possibly 20meters down. Sorry no photos.
Location: Crested Butte Area
Date of Observation: 01/10/2020
Name: Zach Kinler and Eric Murrow
Aspect: East, South East, South, South West
Elevation: 8,800′-12,070′
Avalanches: 1 small skier triggered wind slab: HS-AS-R1-D1-I
Weather: Cold with temps in single digits to low teens. Low clouds in valley bottom gave way to sunny skies midday before orographic clouds rolled back in from the NW. Winds calm in sheltered terrain on the climb to ridgeline where moderate NW winds greeted us.
Snowpack: 1-2″ new snow overnight. Below and near treeline slopes had an HS of 50-70 cm. Open and steeper slopes held stacks of crusts with weak snow in between while low angle slopes and more easterly aspects were mostly faceted and lacking any slab. Moving above tree line, the snowpack is quite variable with many windward slopes stripped clean while gullies and inset features on South and West aspects have been cross-loaded and are holding much more snow. Recent snow and wind created very isolated and small wind slabs. On due south, supportive crusts on steeper upper elevations slopes gave way to thinner breaker crusts on lower angle terrain.
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