Avalanche

Avalanche: Greens Basin

Peter LenzSalt Lake
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Avalanche

Slab Width
9 m
Weak Layer
New Snow/Old Snow Interface
Trigger Type
Skier
Avalanche Type
Soft Slab
Slab Thickness
61 cm
Trigger Detail
Unintentionally Triggered
Start Zone Aspect
North
Avalanche Problem
New Snow
Start Zone Elevation
2377 m

I triggered a small slide at a relatively low elevation (7800ft) while descending from Green's Basin. We were aware of a prior small slide in this location, a few years previously, and were skiing one at a time. I started the slide, which I estimate to have been 30 feet wide, 2 feet deep at the crown, and ran only 40-50 feet. I was alerted by my partner that the slope was sliding, and was able to ski out of it to my left. The slide clearly ran on an icy layer underlying a slab of new snow. It did not break into a deeper layer. The slide was small, but was interesting to me given the relatively low elevation of 7800 feet.