Date of Observation: 03/14/2023
Name: Zach Guy

Zone: Northwest Mountains
Route Description: Took a lap on Schuylkill Ridge and Purple Palace, traveling mostly on east and northeast aspects N/BTL.

Observed avalanche activity: Yes
Avalanches: A handful of small wet loose and two small storm slabs that either ran today or yesterday during the warm sunny weather. The storm slabs were about a foot thick on Peeler Peek, on east and northeast aspects, triggered by sluffs.
Like elsewhere, the Slate saw a significant storm slab cycle during the last storm, with lots of evidence of moving snow, partially filled in crowns and debris. The most notable slides were two off of the Great Wide Open that reached valley floor, one off of the west side of Baldy that crossed the slate, and all of the W/SW gullies off of Gothic produced large slides.
Weather: Partly cloudy skies, mild temps, light winds.
Snowpack: No signs of instability underfoot apart from some minor rollerballs. Stability tests on E and NE aspects produced non-propagating results on the storm interface down about 60 cm. On a SE aspect near treeline, we got repeatable propagating results (ECTP19, ECTP21) on a faceted crust down 80 cm, which was the 2nd crust from the top of the snowpack.
Snow surfaces got wet on all but the northern quadrant. Surface crusts transition from very soft and thin on northeast, to much thicker due south. I found dry, recrystallized grains developing above the crust on NE, E, and SE aspects. These were cooked off on due south. On north aspects, the snow surface was a mix of decomposing/fragmented grains and graupel. There was some surface hoar growth below 10,000′ feet this morning, but that appeared to be cooked or evolving into the near-surface facets above the crust.

Date of Observation: 03/14/2023

Zone: Northwest Mountains
Route Description: I was in a group of 3 today and we skied the North Face of Blob in the Yule Creek drainage.

Observed avalanche activity: Yes
Avalanches: We reached the summit of The Blob with no signs of instability. The first 2 skiers skied the line with no issues. I was the 3rd skier and skied skiers left of the first two tracks. The line has multiple rolls and the line I skied had a large roll in the middle of it. Once I made a few turns down that roll, the slope began to fracture around me. I tried to ski out of it on the right side but the debris took my skies out from under me. I was in the debris for roughly 100 to 300 feet but managed to stay on top the entire time. I eventually came to a stop about halfway down the bed surface and a few hundred feet above where the slide stopped. Both of my skis came out during the slide but I was able to locate both of them and ski back down to my partners who were out of the way of the slide. No injuries occurred and I was able to ski out to the car with all of my gear.

Date of Observation: 03/13/2023
Name: Text Message

Zone: Southeast Mountains
Route Description: Snodgrass

Observed avalanche activity: Yes
Avalanches: Photo submitted via text to CBAC. Storm slab appears to be unintentionally triggered by a skier or rider. Some snow in the tracks so likely triggered on Saturday or Sunday.

Photos:

Date of Observation: 03/13/2023
Name: Zach Guy

Zone: Southeast Mountains
Route Description: Various locations as viewed from town and Brush Creek.

Observed avalanche activity: Yes
Avalanches: Documenting a few more storm slabs that likely ran early Saturday, and a small glide release that ran today.

Date of Observation: 03/13/2023
Name: Irwin Guides

Zone: Northwest Mountains
Route Description: Irwin Tenure

Observed avalanche activity: Yes
Avalanches: A few point releases on Robinson E wall, and SW aspects in the New World. All below rock bands. The Southeast Face of Afley ran wall to wall during the storm.
Snowpack: No signs of instability today, yesterdays storm slabs have settled and become unreactive. Snow surfaces did get moist on all aspects and elevations in our tenure. Roller balls were starting on E-S aspects after 1230. No signs of instability after AE tests on S aspects or any other of our terrain traveled

Photos:

Date of Observation: 03/13/2023
Name: Zach Guy

Zone: Southeast Mountains
Route Description: West Brush Creek. Traveled mostly on east and northeast aspects to 11,600′

Observed avalanche activity: Yes
Avalanches: Observed a large storm slab (D2.5) run this afternoon off the south face of Teo. The slab initiated as a relatively small pocket on a southeast aspect and then triggered a much broader, thicker crown on a cross-loaded terrain feature facing south that subsequently ran to valley floor.
Several very small dry loose and wet loose avalanches ran throughout the day.
West Brush Creek drainage saw a fairly widespread storm slab cycle, D1-D2, likely Friday night-Saturday morning. Pics show the largest slides, though there were plenty more. In three of the S/SW gullies of Teo, storm slabs stepped down and triggered more destructive persistent slabs, D2.5-D3. The crowns were mostly filled in but I measured debris blocks as thick as 4 feet, pencil hard.
Weather: Few to scattered skies through mid-afternoon. Mild temps. Calm winds.
Snowpack: I didn’t measure storm snow totals, but they seemed on par with other areas, in the 2-foot range. Snow surfaces became moist to wet on everything without a northerly tilt, producing a few rollerballs and minor sluffs. We skied on several steep, shady slopes with no signs of instability. However, we did get a creek bed to calve off about 3-feet deep on a facet layer at valley bottom.

Date of Observation: 03/13/2023

Zone: Northwest Mountains
Route Description: Axtell 1st bowl

Observed avalanche activity: Yes
Avalanches: Remote triggered D1.5 storm slab from 5m away on east-facing flank of 1st bowl near old prayer flags. Collapse was loud. Crown estimated to be 70cm x 20m. Appeared to fail at storm interface.
Several old crowns in 1st and 2nd bowl that looked to have released mid-storm.
Ski cut triggered D1 in a north-facing chute of 1st bowl. The second rider was able to trigger additional hang fire with a second ski cut. Crown was estimated to be 40cm x 10m. This path appeared to have failed mid-storm then again with our ski cuts presumably at the storm interface.

Date of Observation: 03/13/2023
Name: Travis Guy

Zone: Southeast Mountains
Route Description: Gothic road between gothic town site and SAIL site

Observed avalanche activity: Yes
Avalanches: Heard/saw about 8 avalanches running down the chutes on gothic east face. First avalanche seen was at 11:07 (circled in red). Subsequent avalanches seen/heard for the next 2 hours (circled in green)
Weather: Sunny, calm, -3.2C (at 11:10am)

Date of Observation: 03/13/2023
Name: Rob Strickland

Zone: Southeast Mountains
Route Description: Standard skinner. A few inches of new provide a bit of float above the crusts

Observed avalanche activity: Yes
Avalanches: – East side of the bowl (west facing) wet slab.
– Inde basin (photo). All east facing ripped and looked like a shallow slab but impressive R3/4.
– But no movement on east facing Elk Creek shots.
Some examples of cornice fall to D1 and filled in again.
Weather: Partly light… partly cloudy.
Snowpack: Deeep. Where’d all those little trees go?

Date of Observation: 03/13/2023
Name: billy barr

Zone: Southeast Mountains
Route Description: Gothic Townsite

Observed avalanche activity: No
Weather: Light snow Sunday, then a short wave after dark before scattered showers overnight with 6″ new and water a more reasonable 0.44″. Currently cloudy with a few small patches of what passes for blue (take what you can get) and calm (have to love that one). Current snowpack is winter deepest at 83½”
Snowpack: