Avalanche
- Slab Width
- 15 m
- Trigger Type
- Skier
- Avalanche Type
- Soft Slab
- Slab Thickness
- 46 cm
- Start Zone Aspect
- Northwest
- Avalanche Problem
- New Snow
- Start Zone Elevation
- 2591 m
Got to break trail AND! trigger an avalanche. A complete day.
Cracked out my test slope which sympathetically released the adjacent terrain trap.
Idea was to see if it was possible to get to Porter Pass without getting killed in an avalanche. Decision point was behavior of the test slope, which averages about 25 degrees but has steep folds of about 35 degrees and is quite bushy. Thinking the bushes were the propagating mechanism.
First run on the test slope cracked it out though I didn’t realize it until skinning up to evaluate. Skin track was on the summer trail which had cracks above and below.
First photo is cracks at the top of the slope with my turn in the foreground.
Second photo is avalanche in terrain trap which is about 45 degrees. Failed on the old snow/new snow interface.
Video is wind blowing bushes above the test slope at 8500 feet looking up toward Porter Pass which is 9400 feet with some commentary about how lethal the terrain is and better go home.