Location: Crested Butte Area
Date of Observation: 01/18/2019
Name: 2nd Hand from Aaron Carlson

Subject: Remotely Triggered Avalanche Red Lady and Red Lady Glades Avalanches
Aspect: South East, South, South West, West
Elevation: 9000-12000

Avalanches:

Watched Party remotely trigger large avalanche in Red Lady Bowl on Mount Emmons from ridgetop before planned descent of bowl. Party then aborted plans and skied Red Lady glades, subsequently triggering other 1-3ft deep pockets where terrain steepened, convexities.

Weather:

Snowpack:
Photos:

Location: Cement Creek Area
Date of Observation: 01/18/2019
Name: Eric Murrow

Subject: Walrod banger
Aspect: North East, East
Elevation: 9,400 – 10,500

Avalanches:

Went for a stroll out lower Cement Creek and heard that there was a significant avalanche up Walrod Gulch and so I took a look. Check out the photos below. Good example of terrain that you may walk your dog on or nordic ski underneath that under HIGH avalanche danger and an Avalanche Warning could prove to be very dangerous. Debris is estimated to be 10 plus feet deep in places and covers around 700 linear feet of the road. The path has about 1,000 vertical feet and pushed debris up the opposing hillside a good bit and then likely triggered an avalanche on the opposing hillside.

Weather: Mostly cloudy skies with light winds at valley bottom.

Snowpack: shallow, weak, and tender.

Photos:

Location: Crested Butte Area
Date of Observation: 01/18/2019
Name: ADB

Subject: Anthracite Mesa-Coneys: WIND
Aspect: East
Elevation: BTL

Avalanches:

Road leading to Trailhead, observed two areas with storm slabs.
East aspect below trees above Meridian Lakes: Two slides: SS-N-R1-D1 on a slope at least 30 degrees on a linear
West/SW aspects between lower two cattle guards: SS-N-R1-D1 on slope less than 30 degrees but below a convexity in a shallow snowpack evidenced by grasses and shrubs on slope.

Weather: Cold and blustery.
Moderate winds in the valley bottom and on the ridge. Obscured skies. Periods of S1 and S-1 snowfall.
Moderate winds on ridge didn’t transport snow onto the leeward sides. Winds in the valley bottom with no trees or vegetative cover transported snow, filling in skin track with 6 inches of snow.

Snowpack: Between 6 and 8 inches of new snow within 24 hours with a few areas favored by wind deposition of 10 inches.
All about the wind.
No collapses or cracking. Tested a few convex slopes in the valley bottom on east and west aspects with no failures or shooting cracks.
Supportive snow.
Photos:

Location: Crested Butte Area
Date of Observation: 01/18/2019
Name: CBPSP

Subject: Crested Butte Mountain Resort Obs
Aspect: North
Elevation: 10200′-11400′

Avalanches:

Funnel N-SS-R2-D2-I
Teo 2 N-SS-R3-D3-O
Wolfs Lair AE-SS-R2-D2-I
Disgusting Trees AEy-SS-R3-D2-O/G (small feature that released sympathetic from another slide crown was 5′)

Weather: Temperature’s in the low teens with moderate NW winds all day. 10″ of new last night with .9″ SWE

Snowpack: Ran routes in previously open terrain today most teams reported storm slabs that were reactive to explosives. As the day progressed isolated touchy wind slabs formed throughout the day.
Photos:

Location: Crested Butte Area
Date of Observation: 01/18/2019
Name: Greta Starrett

Subject: Avalanche sighting
Aspect:
Elevation:

Avalanches:

Sunlight ridge slid again

Weather:

Snowpack:
Photos:

Location: Cement Creek Area
Date of Observation: 01/18/2019
Name: Kieth Cooper

Subject: Large Cement Creek Avalanches
Aspect: East
Elevation: 9000k

Avalanches:

Broke all the way up top, crossed the road and went all the way to the creek.  Cement creek road near the north end of Cement Creek Ranch. About 1.5 miles from trailhead, quarter mile from Warm Spgs.

Weather: Flurries after storm

Snowpack: shiitty
Photos:

Location: Crested Butte Area
Date of Observation: 01/18/2019
Name: Evan Ross

Subject: Slate River Avalanche Obs

Avalanches: Heading out the Slate River. Avalanche activity was widespread on NE aspects to the east of OBJ Creek. Wide propagating crowns in the Happy Chutes and new D2 and D2.5 debris below many of the Climax Chutes. Difficult to See the Climax Chutes with visibility. Passing OBJ the natural avalanche activity became more specific. Didn’t see any activity in the main Schulkyll area. Reaching the great wide open on Schulkyll, there were several D2 to D2.5 avalanches reaching the Slate River. Those avalanches were failing on the lookers right side of the avalanche paths where they get cross-loaded. Then propagating wider in rolls lower down in the terrain.

Location: Crested Butte Area
Date of Observation: 01/18/2019
Name: Ian Havlick

Subject: Windshield Tour Mid Storm Clearing
Aspect: North, East, South East, West
Elevation: 9,000-11,500

Avalanches:

Numerous large to vary large avalanches on nearly all aspect and elevations looking to failing primarily on persistent weak layers deeper int he snowpack. Most impressive avalanches were observed on Whetstone, Cement, and near Crested Butte. Avalanches propagated through fairly forested steep terrain and slopes steeper than about 30º.

Weather: Heavy snow and strong NW winds early tapered to showery orographic snow showers into the afternoon. Temperatures remained mild throughout storm.

Snowpack: 10-12″ snow across area traveled overnight. Noticable wind transport from north-northwesterly direction throughout valley.
Photos:

Location: Paradise Divide Area
Date of Observation: 01/17/2019
Name: Zach Kinler

Subject: Washington Gulch
Aspect: North East, East, West
Elevation: 9,000-10,400

Avalanches:

Observed several D1-D2+ avalanches on West aspects Above, Near and Below Tree line from recent storm.

Weather: Sunny and warm early transitioned into clouds, wind and light snow. High ~ -3.0C. Strong winds with loading snow observed on peaks and ridge lines.

Snowpack: HS @ 10,400: 148 cm. 30 cm recent storm snow.

Photos:

Location: Crested Butte Area
Date of Observation: 01/17/2019
Name: ADB

Subject: Anthracite Mesa-Coneys Day after storm
Aspect: East
Elevation: BTL

Avalanches:

May have observed a couple R1-D1 slides on Schuykill but hard to tell from afar. These occurred mid slope.

Weather: Obstructed skies gave way to broken skies. light to calm winds in valley bottom and in the trees. Moderate winds on the ridgeline with surface snow transport into first bowl.
Paradise Divide area: Moderate to strong winds at ATL. Consistent blowing snow on summits of Baldy and other peaks. Winds direction was from the west (see picture).

Snowpack: Since yesterday’s observations: 2 to 6 inches of wind deposited snow.
no cracking or collapsing. snow was more supportive than yesterday morning.
appears that graupel (<1cm) may have fallen at the end of the snowfall period. graupel on surface formed a scattered layer and doesn’t appear to be widespread.
couldn’t see the remotely triggered avalanche in first bowl from 1/16 observations as recent snow covered any trace.

Photos: