Date of Observation: 04/28/2023

Zone: Northwest Mountains
Route Description: Mt. Owen, north side ATL

Observed avalanche activity: Yes
Avalanches: Skier triggered a soft slab. See photo.

Date of Observation: 04/26/2023
Name: Turner Petersen

Zone: Southeast Mountains
Route Description: Skied the M face on Whetstone with Tom Rob and Dan.

Observed avalanche activity: Yes
Avalanches: We kicked the top cornice which produced a very isolated and small wind slab that entrained any available surface snow on a stout north crust. Ran 1000′.
Weather: Sunny. Winds from the NW.
Snowpack: 5′ of new snow on a firm glazed north crust.

Photos:

Date of Observation: 04/25/2023
Name: Whitney Gilliam

Zone: Northwest Mountains
Route Description: Skooks main skinner!

Observed avalanche activity: No
Avalanches:
Weather: Cloudy, warm, off and on precip
Snowpack: Noticed lots of water in the snowpack ~1ft+ down in the snowpack while breaking trail… hard to say if it was because of rain or a poor freeze. Didn't think too much of it, but near the skooks bench I experienced two large wumphs/collapses and decided to turn around :)

Date of Observation: 04/22/2023
Name: Mark And Turner

Zone: Northwest Mountains
Route Description: AMR, playground

Observed avalanche activity: Yes
Avalanches: Intentional windlip/cornice triggered small storm slab south anthracites which ran full track. Video on insta, freeze frame below.

Ski triggered thin wind slab east facing top of y chute which ran 500 ft or so. See photos.

Skied north facing below tree line with no other signs of instability

Weather: Intermittently heavy snow and sun, with some afternoon graupel. Light winds, cool air temps

Date of Observation: 04/22/2023
Name: Evan Ross

Zone: Northwest Mountains
Route Description: NE-E-SE 9,500-11,500. Purple Ridge Area.

Observed avalanche activity: Yes
Avalanches: At 1pm, wet loose avalanches were reactive on NE and E below 11,300ft. These were generally small, but where they could run and accumulate mass they became large in size. We skier triggered several small wet avalanches and one become large in size. Another party had triggered more wet avalanches in similar terrain.

Weather: Convective snow showers with some moderate winds and drifting snow during those periods. The greenhouse was in full effect.

Snowpack: Recent storm totals were around 20 to 25cm at 11,000ft. Less snow at lower elevations and more snow at higher elevations… On the lee side of Purple Ridge, the drifts were a couple of feet thick. It was difficult to assess how far the thicker drifts extended into the slopes below. Wind slabs felt stubborn, but there was a notable lower-density layer of snow near the bottom of the drifts.

Snow surfaces become moist to wet on the sunny aspects, and thick/moist on northerlies BTL.

Date of Observation: 04/19/2023
Name: Eric Murrow

Zone: Northwest Mountains
Route Description: Kebler Pass road up to Scarp Ridge.

Observed avalanche activity: No
Avalanches: none
Weather: Light snowfall with obscured views. Strong southwest winds.
Snowpack: At 330pm, storm totals were less than 2 inches.  Snowfall rated increased as I left the area.  Strong winds blasted the snow towards leeward terrain features. The lowest-elevation terrain, below 9,500 feet, snow surfaces were soft from mild-ish temperatures but did not pose a loose avalanche threat. I dug a quick hole on a north-facing slope immediately adjacent to Crested Butte and found meltwater had drained 2+ feet into the snowpack. There was still some free water present. I do not expect this to create any avalanche concerns; I was simply checking on how deep meltwater has drained on the warmest north-facing slopes.

Date of Observation: 04/17/2023
Name: Evan Ross

Zone: Northwest Mountains
Route Description: Baxter Basin, North to 12,000ft.

Observed avalanche activity: Yes
Avalanches: Difficult to tell if there have been more natural loose wet avalanches since yesterday. Nothing notable stood out.

Weather: Few clouds, hot, calm wind.

Snowpack: Due north was dry and provided great skiing with minor sluffing in steep terrain. Just about everything else was looking hot and not inviting in the afternoon. NE slopes had gone through a shed cycle where they were steep and rocky. Lower elevation NE slopes had a shiny appearance from a distance.

Date of Observation: 04/17/2023
Name: Evan Ross

Zone: Northwest Mountains
Route Description: Poverty Gulch near Pittsburg.

Observed avalanche activity: Yes
Avalanches: This avalanche was previously reported and ran on 4/12.

This wet slab was triggered by a wet loose avalanche from above. In total, it ran 800 vertical feet, though the slab only ran about 400ft. It was surprisingly destructive. In the debris there were many aspen trees, maybe 30 to 50, and there were about 10 mature pine trees. This slope had several wet loose avalanche events in the couple of weeks before it ran as this wet slab.

Date of Observation: 04/16/2023

Zone: Southeast Mountains
Route Description: Coneys

Observed avalanche activity: Yes
Avalanches: Triggered on the rollover at the end of coneys. 11 am ish

Date of Observation: 04/16/2023
Name: Turner Petersen

Zone: Northwest Mountains
Route Description: Skied 2 laps on the s tube and down to our sleds via camo glades.

Observed avalanche activity: Yes
Avalanches: Kicked off a very small wind slab maybe 15 feet wide on my entrance ski cut that ended up entraining my Sluff. Ran maybe 800ft. Wouldn’t bury you but wouldn’t be fun. Took place skiers left of s proper.
Weather: Sunny
Snowpack: Cold 7” on northerlies.