Avalanche

Avalanche: Wolverine Cirque

Josh PalmerSalt Lake
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Avalanche

Trigger Type
Natural
Start Zone Aspect
Northeast
Start Zone Elevation
3231 m

Close call here. We evaluated the snowpack on similar aspects on the way up and didn't see any wind slabs. No cracking either and the snow was still light/hadn't heated up yet, so we decided Bombay chute would be relatively safe to ski as long as there was a safe entrance into the chute and we could get well below the cornice. There was a safe entrance and the chute skied well. The snowpack was a little punchy skiing down, but otherwise felt stable. About a minute after both myself and my friend got down and were in a safe zone, we were looking back up at the chute and observed a natural cornice break that fanned into a dry loose avalanche that could have easily carried a rider over a small but rocky cliff band had someone been in the chute at the time.