Mt. Axtell

CBAC2014-15 Observations

GUIDE(S): Donny

DATE: 15-03-18

LOCATION: Axtell / Green Lake
ELEVATION: 9100’ to 11,800′
ASPECT: Mostly north and northeast with a few pitches of southern aspect
WEATHER: 0945 @ 10,000’ – Low angle, north aspect – Overcast, flurries, light wind, 4ºC, SkiPen: 5cm
1100 @ 10,800’ – Ridge – Broken sky, calm, 4ºC, SkiPen: 5cm, BootPen: 20cm
1230 @ 11,600’ – Top of Couloir – Overcast, S-1, light wind, 4ºC, SkiPen: 5cm, BootPen: 5cm
1400 @ 11,800’ – Top of second couloir – Overcast, S-1, light wind, 3ºC, SkiPen: 15cm, BootPen: 30cm (to ground)
SNOWPACK/AVALANCHE OBS: Skied moist and wet snow all day.  Felt a few “whumpfs” in flat terrain as surface crust collapsed.  When sun would break through for a moment a greenhouse effect could be felt and rollerballs and pinwheels would be present immediately. This was never prolonged.  No other signs of instabilities.  I probed during the entire climb of a north facing couloir.  Average depth was less than a meter and it obviously slid quite a bit during the previous storm cycle.  The snow is dense and consistent throughout the snowpack.  Surface was “hot pow” and didn’t want to run down hill.  On the way home, south aspects were completely isothermal and the north facing glades were wet.

Mountain Weather March 18, 2015

CB Avalanche CenterWeather

Date:

Warm and moist air is being drawn from the low pressure system today as it moves inland from Baja. A shortwave from the northwest will provide cooler air and an increased chance of snowfall this afternoon into tomorrow, althoughy accumulations look to be light. The rain/snow line will hover near 9,500 to10,000 feet today and start to lower overnight. Conditions will dry out by Friday and Saturday.

Today

High Temperature: 45
Wind Speed: 2-12 mph
Wind Direction: W
Sky Cover: Mostly Cloudy
Snow: 0-2″

Tonight

Low Temperature: 25
Wind Speed: 0-10
Wind Direction: W, NW
Sky Cover: Mostly Cloudy
Snow: 1-3″

Tomorrow

High Temperature: 37
Wind Speed: 4-14
Wind Direction: N, NW
Sky Cover: Mostly Cloudy
Snow: 0-2″

Wet slab avalanches

CB Avalanche Center2014-15 Observations

LOCATION: Kebler Pass Area
DATE OF OBSERVATION: 03/17/2015
NAME: Zach Guy
SUBJECT: Wet slab avalanches
ASPECT: East, South East
ELEVATION: Near/ Above treeline

 

AVALANCHES: Explosives triggered one wet slab, about 200 feet wide and 1 foot deep on a SE aspect near treeline. WS-AB-R2-D2-O

Second hand observations:
1)Wet slabs on skiers right of the Lady? Maybe Coon too? Hard to say, but looked like 2x D2 in Coon, maybe 40 m wide? Roughly the same in the Lady with a second pocket on the lower bench.
2.) Wet slab avalanche on an East aspect of Whetstone Mtn.

WEATHER: High of 52F at 10k. Light winds. Few clouds.

SNOWPACK: Ski pen increases from the top 5 cm late morning to nearly full depth by the afternoon. Around 3 p.m., we skier triggered one shooting crack on a SE aspect at 11,800 ft,  10 feet wide and about a foot deep, failing on wet grains. The slab moved downhill 6″ but stopped.

UPLOADS:

Mt. Emmons

CBAC2014-15 Observations

GUIDE(S): Donny

DATE: 15-03-17

ACTIVITY: BC Skiing

LOCATION: Red Lady Bowl and Evan’s Basin

ELEVATION: 9200’ to 12,400’

ASPECT: SE-S-SW

WEATHER: 11:30 @ 11,200’ – SE Aspect: Clear, 6ºC, light wind from south, T20: 0ºC, SkiPen: 5cm, BootPen: full leg;
12:30 @ 12,400’ – Summit: Clear, 8ºC, moderate wind from south, T20: -1ºC, Ski Pen: 10cm, Boot Pen: 10cm
14:30 @ 11,800’ – SSW Aspect: Mostly sunny, 11ºC, calm, T20: -2ºC, SkiPen: 5cm, BootPen: 10cm

SNOWPACK/AVALANCHE OBS: Evidence of recent wet slab activity on multiple faces, mostly SE aspects. Climbing up through and above RLG I found mostly wet snow with free water present on SE aspects. SW/W aspects clearly get hot in afternoon as they are all runneled. Skied far skier’s left of RLB and found 5 to 10 cm of wet snow over still cold (-2ºC). At 12:45 it was moist and dense, but not yet wet. Surface produced insignificant surface sliding and a handful of rollerballs and pinwheels.

White Mountain

CB Avalanche Center2014-15 Observations

LOCATION: Crested Butte Area
DATE OF OBSERVATION: 03/17/2015
NAME: Kirk
SUBJECT: White Mountain
ASPECT: East
ELEVATION: 13401

 

AVALANCHES: N/A

WEATHER: Bluebird Morning temp at @ 7:15 23F light wind from the north

SNOWPACK: Solid as a rock .. spring supportable . 10:30 am Due East was good to go from the top all way to bottom . lower elevations were getting soft much later could be hating it .

UPLOADS:

Mountain Weather March 17, 2015

CB Avalanche CenterWeather

Date: 03/17/2015

Spring Break 2015 remains in full effect today, with mountain temps climbing from 30’s this morning to the high 40’s or low 50’s. The large scale weather pattern begins to change this afternoon. The low pressure system that has been parked off of Baja for the last week will move inland, bringing warm, moist air overhead. A shortwave dropping from northwest tonight will bring more lift and colder temps to help kick off the potential for snowfall. Additional energy and moisture will boost the chance for snow Wednesday night into Thursday. This system is complex and we might get surprised, but it doesn’t look too exciting for snowfall accumulations,

Today

High Temperature: 50
Wind Speed: 5-15
Wind Direction: S
Sky Cover: Increasing clouds
Snow: 0

Tonight

Low Temperature: 28
Wind Speed: 5-15
Wind Direction: SW
Sky Cover: Mostly Cloudy
Snow: 0-2″

Tomorrow

High Temperature: 45
Wind Speed: 5-15
Wind Direction: W, NW
Sky Cover: Overcast
Snow: 0-2″

Natural wet loose avalanches

CB Avalanche Center2014-15 Observations

LOCATION: Kebler Pass Area
DATE OF OBSERVATION: 03/16/2015
NAME: Zach Guy
SUBJECT: Natural wet loose avalanches
ASPECT: Various
ELEVATION: up to 12,000 ft.

 

AVALANCHES: New loose wet avalanches (D1 in size, last 48 hours) on NE and E aspects near and above treeline in Peeler Basin and Anthracite Range, and a northwest aspect below treeline near Cement Creek (D1.5).  See Ian’s ob of new wetslab in Peeler.

WEATHER: Temps reached into 50’s at 10k. Light wind to moderate winds. Few clouds

SNOWPACK: Free water is on the move. Refreeze was about 6″ overnight at 11k. Boot pen to the ground through wet grains in a number of slopes facing SE to W near/above treeline.

UPLOADS:

Mountain Weather March 16, 2015

CB Avalanche CenterWeather

Date: 03/16/2015

High pressure will continue to dominate today with mostly clear sky and above average afternoon temperatures. We’ll start seeing changes in the weather tomorrow afternoon and into Wednesday as a low pressure over Baja spins warm moisture into Colorado. Unfortunately this system looks to favor eastern Colorado and our area looks to be on the fringe of any precipitation. Slightly colder air will be moving in Wednesday night into Thursday as a weak cold front pushes this moist air south and east of Colorado.

Today

High Temperature: 48-52
Wind Speed: 2-12
Wind Direction: W
Sky Cover: Mostly Clear
Snow: 0

Tonight

Low Temperature: 30
Wind Speed: 2-12
Wind Direction: SE
Sky Cover: Partly Cloudy
Snow: 0

Tomorrow

High Temperature: 45
Wind Speed: 2-12
Wind Direction: S
Sky Cover: Partly Cloudy
Snow: 0

Snodgrass

CBAC2014-15 Observations

NAME: Evan Ross
DATE: 3/15/15
LOCATION: Snodgrass
ELEVATION: BTL 
ASPECT: NE
WEATHER: Mostly clear, real warm and no wind.
SNOWPACK:
NE slopes were getting sloppy and at 1pm had about 4-6″ of wet snow on the surface. Skiing on slopes less then 35 degrees produced pinwheels and roller balls that mde me wonder if you would have skier triggered the wet loose problem on steeper slopes? Persistent slab structure could be felt on all slopes traveled but was unreactive  in the form of any obvious signs to instability.
Dug on test profile on a due north facing slope at 9,650 feet. HS 135. Overall structure was a 75cm 4f-1f slab sitting on F+ facets. CT14SC, ECTP23 SC on this interface, both fractures where sudden but somewhat rough and not planner as they broke through the 2mm facets.
AVALANCHE OBS: 
Heard 1 wet avalanche tumble off the east face of gothic around 1:30pm.