Location: Cement Creek Area
Date of Observation: 02/17/2020
Name: Cosmo
Subject: Cement Creek
Aspect: South, South West, West, North West
Elevation: 9300-10600

Weather: Storm total from the last 48hrs as of 630am @ 9300′-about 4 and a quarter inches. Snowfall on 2/16 was intermittent with more intense periods after 4pm. Kind of partly cloudy this morning. Not snowing currently.

Snowpack: Toured up to about 10600′ yesterday. No signs of instability. Crust from the middle of last week on southernmost aspects was supportable to skiers, becoming breakable as you wrap around to the west. Due west aspects are slabby and supportable, especially at higher elevations, becoming facety as you wrap further to the north. Most of the aspects we skied were only intermittently supportable below about 9800 or 10000 ft.

Location: Kebler Pass Area
Date of Observation: 02/16/2020
Name: Eric Murrow
Subject: Kebler Pass snow check
Aspect: North, North East, East, South East, South
Elevation: 9200 – 11500′

Avalanches: Observed a couple of dry loose avalanches on very steep easterly terrain, very small in size and only involved new snow.

Weather: Overcast skies with light winds at valley bottom. Little to no snowfall from 1230 – 330. New snow accumulations of 5″ at 11,400′ @ 300pm. New snow was largely small graupel and rimed precip particles. A minimal amount of drifting at ridge top near treeline at this location. Had reasonable views of greater Anthracite Range in the afternoon with some wind transport visible above treeline but less than expected. Winds were from the west. Leaving Kebler Pass around 330 snowfall started again and winds began to pick up.

Snowpack: No cracking with the new snow or at old interface. Traveled through southerly start zones between 11,000′ – 11,500′ and found crusts 5 to 7cm thick on south aspects and 2-3cm thick on southeast beneath the new snow.  Due south slopes made for fun dust on crust skiing.

Photos:

Location: Paradise Divide Area & Crested Butte Area
Date of Observation: 02/15/2020
Name: Ben Pritchett and Evan Ross
Subject: Gothic area obs

Avalanches: A fresh very large natural avalanche ran on a southerly facing slope. The slab appears to have released under a cross-loaded cornice on southeast-facing fracture, but propagated broadly, wrapping to south, then south-west facing terrain. It released near the ground.

Weather: Ridgeline Wind Speed: 20-30 mph
Ridgeline Wind Direction: W
Wind Loading: Light
Temperature: 30 F
Sky Cover: Overcast
Depth of Total Snow: 120 cm
Most Significant Precip Rate: S-1 – < 1 cm/hr
Weather Description: Partly cloudy becoming overcast by mid-afternoon. Spitting snow off and on mid-afternoon, no accumulation. Strong winds aloft, but sheltered and pretty warm where we traveled with no drifting close by. Light drifting above treeline

Snowpack: Nice snow surfaces for incoming storm – well settled, dense, and decomposing grains, near zero C. A couple of faint, muffled collapses in weak spots near old drifted slabs, but no cracking. No consistent persistent slab structure observed in this terrain, though we still avoided slopes over 40 degrees that dumped into terrain traps. 2/3 facet layer is somewhat weaker than near surface snow above it, but all pretty close to 4 Finger stiff.

Photos:

Location: Cement Creek Area
Date of Observation: 02/16/2020
Name: Cosmo
Subject: Cement Creek Snow
Elevation: 9400’

Weather: Just a skiff of new snow over night and light snowfall @ 7am. Looks socked in and snowing a little harder up valley toward Reno and Italian.

Location: Crested Butte Area
Date of Observation: 02/15/2020
Name: Frank S
Subject: Coon Basin
Aspect: East
Elevation: 12,000

Avalanches: D3 R3. Most of north side of Coon Basin has slid, probably this morning, as I didn’t notice it yesterday. Appears to have stepped down in several areas. Appears naturally triggered

Weather: Bluebird

Location: Crested Butte Area
Date of Observation: 02/14/2020
Name: Frank S
Subject: Mt Emmon
Aspect: North, North East, East
Elevation: 9,000′-11’300

Avalanches: A few small avalanches in wind-loaded pockets, were covered by the latest snow.

Weather: Bluebird

Snowpack: Rotten layer 12″ down, crust on E aspects, powder NE-N.

Location: Crested Butte Area
Date of Observation: 02/15/2020
Name: Eric Murrow
Subject: Coon Basin avalanche
Aspect: East, South East
Elevation: 12,000′

Edited 2/16 AM after site visit with additional photos

Avalanches: Avalanche in easterly facing Coon Basin visible this morning, Saturday 2/15 From valley bottom looks to be fairly large and destructive.

Photos: