Quick report
- Slope Angle
- 30°
Avalanche
- Slab Width
- 15 m
- Weak Layer
- Facets
- Trigger Type
- Natural
- Vertical Fall
- 61 m
- Avalanche Type
- Soft Slab
- Slab Thickness
- 91 cm
- Start Zone Aspect
- Northwest
- Avalanche Problem
- Persistent Weak Layer
- Start Zone Elevation
- 2774 m
Came across this natural avalanche on the lower slopes of Knob Mountain. A short slope that is probably in the lower 30 degree range avalanched and ran surprisingly far through low angle aspens. I'm guessing it came down sometime this morning because there was not a lot of new snow on the debris field. This seems like a pretty unusual place to see a natural avalanche which just speaks to how serious things are out there right now. I'd estimate that the crown was between 2 and 3 feet deep. I did not get too close so measurements are estimates. This area gets moderately loaded by the wind but certainly not as much as most areas under the high ridgelines on the Skyline.
This is yet another reminder that places that normally seem safe to travel are not right now. I certainly fell into the familiarity trap of having skied this area in all sorts of conditions and snowpacks and I shouldn't have been out there today.