Location: Crested Butte Area
Date of Observation: 03/30/2018
Name: Ian Havlick
Subject: Climax Chutes
Aspect: North, North East, East, South East, South
Elevation: 9000-11300
Avalanches:
no new avalanches observed, though saw a few wet loose dribblers
Weather: Partly cloudy skies clouded up slightly in afternoon to nearly broken. Very warm temperature on car thermometer at 1500 was 46º, but off the road in the hills was likely upper 30s. WNW Winds we gusty 20-30mph gusts near treeline.
Snowpack: Snowpack continues its spring transition with these warm days at lower elevations but not much warming near treeline with cold wind and late afternoon cloudiness. Poor structure remains, and the shallower instability was reactive with extended column test (ECTP23) at 11,300ft, NE facing near CB. The deeper, scary depth hoar buried near the ground (100cm deep), remains cold, sharp-angled and unconsolidated. Minimal wind slab development in the near treeline ridgeline I traveled, though snow was blowing. Lower elevations at 1430 were becoming push-a-lanchy in the old, rain-saturated transformed snow once last night’s refreeze broke down.
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