Monday, Harry and I reconnoitered the snow by driving up Cottonwood Pass, W of Buena Vista, crossing the Continental Divide at 12,132 feet. The pass is closed on the W side, with at least twice as much snow as you see here on the east side, at about 11,600 feet. 



We tested snow- conditions are dangerous for wet slab avalanches, which occur on a slope all at once, without warning because snow is melting at ground level. We ended up hiking lower down, photographing avalanche damage.

Forest Service gave a general estimation of snow-free access around 1 August. Some locations in the forests of the San Juan Range may not melt this summer. 

As I looked out over the forest wreckage, I realized these slides were more damaging than an F5 tornado. They took out everything down to the soil, and splintered the forest. Three crossed the highway on this pass alone. An effort is underway by aerial reconnaissance to count the avalanches, because nobody knows how many there were. Only that it was an unprecedented event. In the Front, Mosquito, and Sawatch Ranges, over 600 are so far documented. The biggest were more than a mile wide. 

Don't yet know how this will affect the "growing season." It will be at least a month before the alpine tundra is snow-free and flower production can begin. Temperatures have been unusually cool too, and above 12,000', storms are still mostly producing snow.