Quick report
- Cracking
- specific
There were signs of cracking and slight collapsing but not the kind of slab propagation that happened in the avalanche. The overall snowpack was very right side up but the wind and depth of new snow exacerbated the existing problems. We traveled cautiously until this point where we needed to cross this more open area to get back to the hut.
Avalanche
- Size
- D2 R2
- Aspect
- SE
- Trigger
- AS
- Elevation
- 8790 ft
While touring in mostly gladed terrain, a decision was made to cross a more open lane that the avalanche forecast and personal suggested could be wind loaded. Several previous tests and observations suggested a mostly right side up snowpack from the last few storms, but increasing winds created soft slabs in gullies with deeper snow. During the ski cut the avalanche began right at the skiers feet and propagated widely on a soft slab. Contributing to this was the transition from a shallower snow pack at a rocky outcropping to a deeper one in a gully.