Gunnison

A few small natural avalanches that likely failed during the rain event on Christmas Day. All small in size from shadier aspects at or below 11,000 feet.

Light to moderate winds. Cloud cover increased in the morning, becomeing mostly cloudy. cloud cover: broken; wind loading: none; recent snowfall (cm): 0 to 10

Tracking the rain crust: In the flats at 9,600ft, there isn't any new snow, and the crust was strong, often supporting boots. At 9,700ft on a northeasterly aspect, the crust was about 4-5cm thick and mostly supportive to skis. F+ facets were dry below. At 10,250 on a NE aspect, the crust is similarly thick with about 5 inches of thick PP mixed with PPgp. F+ facets were dry below. Around 10,700ft, the crust was fading away, and new snow accumulation was around 10cm.  On east- and southeast-facing slopes, the recent rain crust was combined with much thicker milt-freeze crusts. . No notable signs of current instability. We evaluated a few areas with thin wind boards before crossing steep slopes.