Location: Crested Butte Area
Date of Observation: 04/28/2020
Name: Ian Havlick
Subject: Below Treeline Snodgrass Observations
Aspect: North East, East, South East, South
Elevation: 9800-10,400
Avalanches: No wet slabs observed in terrain travelled or surrounding terrain on Belleview, White, Avery, etc. Some larger wet loose avalanche gouging down to ground on west facing terrain visible from, ski out in late afternoon on White Mtn.
Weather: Overcast and extremely warm with car thermometer at TH at 0830 showing 46º and field measurements in the +8C (48F) range. High overcast clouds persisted until about 1130. Light NW winds were persistent in the afternoon.
Snowpack: Average height of snow in areas throughly dug (21 profiles last 2 days) and extensive transects show average HS 85-110cm with dark timber holding most snow currently. Freeze on April 26th was most pronounced in open areas, with darker timber not seeing full freeze with longwave radiation retention. Although fully isothermal in all profiles, large batch of free water and pronounced “wetting fronts” visible to naked eye being held up by various old melt freeze crusts 30-50cm deep in snowpack. Weak, smaller grained 4F and Fist hard snow below those crusts and pooling free water. Concerning.
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