Name: Evan Ross
Location: Mt Emmons
Date of Observation: 12/26/2014
Aspect: South East, South
Elevation: 9,000 to 11,300

Weather: Mostly cloudy, a few S-1 snow squalls, calm wind at BTL and NTL elevations.

Snowpack: Enough solar today for a soft and thin sun crust to form on south slopes over 30 degrees. At 11, 300ft, HS 110, 12/13 interface was down 60cm. Sitting on top of that 12/13 sun crust interface was 10cm of F hard snow, likely NSF. Above this poor structure was the solstice storm and more recent storm events with a slab at its base of 1f to F at the surface. A very quick and singular test was CT14 RP on the NSF. No collapsing or other obvious signs to instability while traveling on these slopes up to 32 degrees. At 11,700ft and just above treeline on a SE ridge, there was no recent signs of wind transported snow in the last 24hr.

Name: Zach Guy
Title: Coney’s
Location: Crested Butte Area
Date of Observation: 12/25/2014
Aspect: North East
Elevation: BTL/NTL

Avalanches: Observed 3 or 4 recent avalanches running on the facet layer on North or Northeast aspects below treeline. About a foot deep, failing full width of their small paths, but small in destructive size (D1 to 1.5’s).

Weather: Surprisingly calm winds. No snow transport observed off of high peaks. Generally broken skies. Periods of heavy snow (S3 +) with lulls between snow pulses. About 5 or 6″ of new snow accumulated through the day.

Snowpack: New snow fell very low density and unaffected by wind. About 12-18″ of recent soft slab (fist + to 4F) over the Dec 13th facet layer, which is basically a faceted conglomerate of all snow prior to Dec 13th to the ground. Lots of collapsing when traveling low angle terrain, and a NE facing slope fractured wall to wall but didn’t slide…just spiderweb cracks down to the facet layer.

Uploads:

Name: Alex
Location: Kebler Pass Area
Date of Observation: 12/25/2014
Aspect: North, North East
Elevation: +/-11,000′

Weather: At noon at the Antracites snowmobile parking area it was snowing heavily with moderate winds from the southwest with about 20 cms new snow. Boot pen was about 40 cms, and the air temp was 15* F. As we skinned up, the snow came and went in squalls. At the top of the skin track the sky cleared a bit, We found 20 cms new snow at the top of short north and northeast facing runs, with a snow depth of +/-160 cms. The Dec. 21-22nd storm’s snow has become a slab under today’s new snow. We skied slopes up to 35* and had no collapses, cracking, or major sloughing. It was snowing heavily again when we left around 4 pm, but skies cleared as we came through the Y and towards CB on Kebler Pass.

Clouds moved back in (after all, one nice day a week is all one can expect) with snow starting after midnight.  Steady but light density snowfall with 5″ new and water 0.25″.  No wind and snowpack up to 28″.  Currently obscured, light snow and 16ºF.  New snow, being light and with no wind, is not yet having much effect on the snowpack ass of yet.   Billy Barr

Location: Snodgrass
Date of Observation: 12/25/2014
Aspect: East, South East
Elevation: 10,400 to 11,000

Avalanches: None observed. No cracking or whomping on ski track.

Weather: Beginning of tour, winds were calm and continuus snowfall less than 2cm/hour. Visibility was great and air temperatures were warm for this time of year. Late morning, weather abruptly changed to strong winds from the west with sideways snow falling. Snow fall rates increased significantly. Air temperatures dropped too.

Snowpack: Four to six inches of new snow had fallen over night with pockets of eight inches in open areas. Ski pole tests revealed upper 18 inches of snow with F and 4F hardness overlying a crust.

Now that there is decent sun and good visibility i see that more slides beyond the saddle between Gothic and Snodgrass actually did run on Snodgrass.  Many of the areas north of the peak ran as well as some sluffs lower down and about 25% of the area in the two largest runs (that i used to call numbers 15 and 16 back in the day i used to check on a regular basis) have run.  Almost all fractures were shallow and ran in the early part of the storm and have been windblown back in (which is why i did not see hem in the flat early day light today).  –I would say about 15 slides in the Snodgrass through Gothic area.  Have not gone up valley.  billy barr

12/24 Good visibility and views of all the recent avalanche activity: