Paintbrush Canyon

Cold freeze overnight with warm temperatures and light wind during the day. The majority of wet loose avalanches had already run their cycle on southerly facing terrain. Larger wet loose avalanches observed below avalanche paths on slopes with sustained vertical fall.  Snow surfaces were warming quickly by 10:00 on slopes sheltered by the wind. Slopes exposed to the wind in upper elevations remained cool without much concern of destabilizing. Cold snow on northerly aspects. Small wind slabs less than 6" deep (less than D1) above 10,000' were reactive on northerly aspects with increased wind the night prior (20-30 mph at JHMR Summit). Good corn snow surface set-up on W-S-E aspects with the right timing of day.

Outlook: Snowfall Tuesday will fall on a widespread melt freeze crust interface on W-S-E aspects across all elevations. Sheltered northerly aspects hold near surface facets. It's important to note that the snowpack has not undergone a complete spring transition on northerly aspects in the middle and upper elevations. 

Large D2.5-R2 wet loose avalanche observed in Paintbrush canyon on south/southeast avalanche path that likely occured to the current warming cycle. Many D1-2 wet loose avalanches observed from the last two days. Multiple large avalanche crowns observed in the area that likely occured during the same time as Albright/Death canyon avalanches March 25th. These occured while the dry snow was transitioning to wet snow, failing on a poor new/old interface with slab depths of 2+ feet on wind loaded terrain.