Quick report
We started our day in Huntington where we booted and skied Diagonal. We noted a wide degree of variability in the snow surface from scoured front pointing to over the boot unconsolidated snow. The line skied very nicely with proper stuff management. We then crossed the garden and discussed an objective in Tucks. We decided that we would ski the center headwall. Navigating to the line involved traversing across deep and firm sastrugi. As we approached the roll over the snow surface changed drastically to loosely consolidated boot top soft slab. While there was no cracking or collapse it was obvious that new slab were forming and it seemed like the convexity at the roll over was an obvious trigger point. I slowly skied into the soft snow traversing skiers left. A small skin approximately 4 inches deep kicked off but was still within the wind transported snow. I radioed my partner who was above and to the right of me that I was going to give a harder ski cut to see if I could clear the remainder of the slab. It broke loose as a point release at my skis a few feet later. The crow was approximately 1ft deep and 60-70 across. Again we radioed and I told my partner that I would ski the bed surface trending skiers left to avoid the debris pile at the bottom of the bowl. We communicated that I would ski the entire line and ski out to the left side of the bowl and radio the all clear. The skiing went as expected and we continued on our tour exiting Tuckerman Ravine via Left Gully. Thankfully no one was below us in the run out.
Avalanche
- Size
- D1 R2
- Type
- SS
- Aspect
- E
- Trigger
- AS
- Elevation
- 5000 ft