Date of Observation: 03/11/2023
Name: Insta Gram
Zone: Northwest Mountains
Route Description: Kebler Pass Road obs
Observed avalanche activity: Yes
Avalanches: “Counted 7+ D1.5’s along Kebler corridor this morning between TH and Axtel skintrack – All on the South facing road cuts”
Weather:
Snowpack:
Date of Observation: 03/11/2023
Name: Insta Gram
Zone: Southeast Mountains
Route Description: Natural avalanche impacting Cement Creek Road/xc trail
Observed avalanche activity: Yes
Avalanches: “Hard to tell, but the big path in the heart of Cement Creek XC trail ran last night…looked like it wasn’t even from the very top from what I could see.”
Weather:
Snowpack:
Date of Observation: 03/11/2023
Name: Text Message Obsevation
Zone: Southeast Mountains
Route Description: This area sits outside the CBAC forecast area just north of Almost above highway 135 (forecaster description)
Observed avalanche activity: Yes
Avalanches: Natural avalanche north of Almont on a northeast-facing slope, around 8,400 feet.
Weather:
Snowpack:
Date of Observation: 03/11/2023
Name: Eric Murrow
Zone: Southeast Mountains
Route Description: Lower Anthracite Mesa from Washington Gulch Trailhead.
Observed avalanche activity: Yes
Avalanches: A few natural storm slab avalanches on east and northeast aspects, D1 – D1.5. Intentionally skier triggered a moist Loose avalanche on a southeast slope below treeline.
Weather: Mostly cloudy skies, about 20 inches of storm snow, light to moderate winds, and mild air temps. Just afternoon there was a period of ‘green housing’ from the sun poking through thin clouds that quickly warmed, settled, and wet snow surfaces on the south half of the compass.
Snowpack: While moving through northeast, east, and southeast aspects below treeline we experienced few signs of instability outside of the natural Storm Slabs that ran during a period of intense snowfall earlier in the morning. On east-facing terrain, we produced a few muffled collapses during a period of strong ‘green-housing’ while surfaces were moist (nearly wet). If I skinned above my partner’s skin track, I was able to produce some ski-length cracks above the established skin track. Test results on an east slope produced an ECTP 28 +1 result and ECTN within the storm snow (see photo). While traveling over a southeast slope, the storm snow had settled and moistened/wetted to a dense, manky 10 inches ( see photo).
Date of Observation: 03/11/2023
Name: Zach Guy
Zone: Southeast Mountains
Route Description: Whetstone, Gibson Ridge, and Emmons viewed from Mt. CB
Observed avalanche activity: Yes
Avalanches: A handful of D1.5 to D2 storm slabs at all elevations. Had decent visibility and did not see anything that stepped down deeper from Whetstone to Axtell to Emmons.
Date of Observation: 03/11/2023
Name: Zach Guy and Zach Kinler
Zone: Southeast Mountains
Route Description: Avalanche mitigation on the small slopes above the ice rink and nordic hill. NE-E aspects at 9,000′.
Observed avalanche activity: Yes
Avalanches: 3 storm slabs ran naturally on the Nordic Hill earlier this morning, about a foot deep. Remotely triggered a drifted storm slab from 20 feet away that was almost 2 feet deep. It broke on precip particles just above the storm interface (windboard). Numerous roof avalanches in town.
Weather: Heavy snowfall rates this morning, light winds.
Snowpack: About 18″ of top-heavy storm snow produced localized cracking in wind-protected terrain (up to 8′ long). Slabs were noticeably thicker and more reactive in drifted terrain, where I got a collapse, shooting cracks, and a remote trigger. All instabilities were on low-density precip particles that fell near the start of the storm (non-PWL).
Date of Observation: 03/11/2023
Name: Billy Barr
Zone: Southeast Mountains
Route Description: Gothic Townsite
Observed avalanche activity: No
Avalanches:
Weather: Obscured clouds and heavy, very dense snow from Friday afternoon on with 20½ inches new and water an absurd 2.19″. Wind became very strong overnight. It remains obscured with moderate to heavy snow with strong wind. The snowpack is at 79½”, winters deepest. billy
Snowpack:
Date of Observation: 03/11/2023
Name: Eric Murrow
Zone: Northwest Mountains
Route Description: Lap up Mount Emmons and snowmobile ride out the Kebler corridor to Horse Ranch Park. Traveled between 1130 and 330pm.
Observed avalanche activity: Yes
Avalanches: I was able to trigger a small avalanche on a drifted feature above treeline into Redwell Basin. Storm totals at this time were around 7 inches and the drifted slab was around 10 inches.
Weather: Consistent snowfall during the afternoon. Snowfall rates of 1 inch per hour or greater. Southwest wind blew at moderate speeds with strong gusts while I was above treeline in the early afternoon. While at the valley bottom later in the afternoon wind speeds appeared to be ramping up. Snowfall totals reached close to 10 inches at 330pm with higher-than-normal densities.
Snowpack: I traveled around simply watching the storm develop, but not enough snow had accumulated by 330 for much to happen. Small Wind Slabs developed by the early afternoon, but sheltered areas had yet to gather enough storm snow to cause much of a problem. I suspect that shortly after I left the mountains storm totals began to increase enough, due to heavy snowfall rates, that shallow Storm Slabs began forming in sheltered areas as well. A Shovel Tilt Test showed a slight density change at the bottom of the storm snow in a location with 8 inches.
Date of Observation: 03/08/2023
Name: Evan Ross
Zone: Northwest Mountains
Route Description: Green Lake area. Below Mt Axtell
Observed avalanche activity: Yes
Avalanches: The Cornice above Green Lake Bowl on Mt Axtell released sometime between yesterday and 9am this morning. I’d assume someone would have seen it yesterday afternoon if it was there. The resulting avalanche was very large in size. The fish in Green Lake were sloshed, but not displaced. The snowpack below the cornice was mostly cleaned out to the ground. However notably there wasn’t a slab avalanche that propagated any wider than where the cornice fell. The cornice above this slope was massive previous to this avalanche.
Weather: Overcast and fairly warm temps. Light winds below 11,000ft.
Photos:
Date of Observation: 03/07/2023
Name: Eric Murrow
Zone: Southeast Mountains
Route Description: Lower Brush Creek
Observed avalanche activity: No
Avalanches: nothing new observed
Weather: Thin high clouds reduced throughout the day. Mild air temps above the freezing mark. Moderate SW winds with some strong gusts.
Snowpack: Traveled through below treeline slopes close to valley bottom with depths ranging from 70cm on south up to 120cm on northerly aspects. Southerly aspects have thick melt/freeze crusts at the surface that soften and lost support to skis but remained intact preventing Wet Loose avalanches concerns from developing. On south and southeast slopes melt water has yet to reach the ground (did not dig on southwest). I was surprised to get moderate propagating test results at two locations on northeast-facing terrain (see images). Early season facets at the base of the snowpack remain weak with just enough slab cohesion for propagation.
