Location: Paradise Divide Area
Date of Observation: 11/25/2014
Elevation: 9,300-11,300

Weather: On and off snow showers producing about 3” of new snow between 9:30am and 3pm. Obscured sky throughout the day with strong enough NW wind to refill some tracks throughout the day but not strong enough to notice the blowing snow.

Snowpack: Snowpack: Found some wind stiffened snow but didn’t find a wind slab problem on the NE terrain at ridgeline. So the take home observations were, where in the terrain traveled was the persistent slab active? The snowpack needed to be deep enough to have a strong enough mid-pack to produce propagating test results. The mid-pack that has any strength is the 11/13 to 11/15 storm sitting over weak facets from earlier this season. This set up can be found down to 9,000ft west of Crested Butte. In this area, about 10,800ft seems to be the elevation where this mid-pack starts gaining enough strength to produce propagating results in snowpack tests that represent the potential for a persistent slab avalanche. Below that average 10,800 elevation on NE aspects the midpack could collapse and would only produce very small radius cracks, or ECTX test results. Above that elevation a pit dug with a 115cm snowpack and 4f-1f mid-pack produced an ECT21 SC and produced other collapses while touring with large radius shooting cracks. Thus, representing areas that could produce a persistent slab avalanche given the right slope angle and terrain feature.

Name: EM
Title: Ob from 11/24
Location: Kebler Pass Area
Date of Observation: 11/25/2014
Aspect: South
Elevation: 11,500

Weather: Weather – Cloudy skies with light snow falling. Air temps were 17 at trailhead and 8 at 11,500. Winds were light with moderate gusting. Observed a small bit of snow being transported by wind, but low visibility didn’t allow for good views in to the alpine. Ski tracks from Sunday were partially filled in at and near treeline.

Snowpack: Snowpack – while traveling off of skin track at treeline small amount of cracking with in the new snow was visible. Jumped on several steep roll overs with out any results. No collapsing either. Snow profile was dug at 11,500 on open, south facing, 32 degree slope. It showed 65cm snow depth. It was comprised of 30cm of 1-1.5mm facets at ground from earlier in november, a 5cm crust the formed from last weeks sunny skies, and then 30cm of new snow since saturday on top. Test results showed reasonable bonding between new snow and sun crust, no results from jumping on steep rolls or shovel shears. CT showed failures below the sun crust on taps from elbow. These were generally Q2. ECT results would not propagate across entire column only about 30cm and were irregular. It appeared as though there may have been a strong temp gradient directly below the sun crust leading to a weakening of the snow directly below it. But battery in thermometer died so no data.

Date of Observation: November 24, 2014
Location: Kebler Pass Area
Aspect (N/S/E/W, etc.): N-NE
Elevation: 9800-11400

Returned to the same zone as yesterday, see WD’s report from 11/23. An additional three inches or so and evidence of strong wind activity overnight. Observed some whoomphing and cracking at the top of the skin track on the ridge where there was lots of wind deposition. Pit at the top of the line we skied confirmed the additional three inches up high. Storm snow was still unconsolidated but ran easily on the old surface, we expected to see loose snow sluffing. Entire pack failed on the ground facets with considerable force. No signs of instability on decent of that line. On the second run wrapping around toward exit trees we observed lots of wind loading and a very defined wind slab of 6 inches or so which failed easily on rollovers.

Name: Brandon Clifford
Title: Baldy
Location: Paradise Divide Area
Date of Observation: 11/19/2014
Aspect: South
Elevation: 12,805′

Avalanches: None.

Weather: Sunny with 0-5 (mph) wind.

Snowpack: Thin on top with better snow on leeward slopes.