Avalanche

Avalanche: Catchers Mit

Trent MeisenheimerSalt Lake
View on map

Avalanche

Slab Width
18 m
Weak Layer
Facets
Trigger Type
Skier
Vertical Fall
61 m
Avalanche Type
Soft Slab
Slab Thickness
51 cm
Trigger Detail
Unintentionally Triggered
Start Zone Aspect
Northeast
Avalanche Problem
New Snow
Start Zone Elevation
3109 m

As we approached for a second lap in the Catchers Mitt a separate party triggered a decent size avalanche off the ridge on their way to the summit. It appears it started as a wind slab/storm slab then after it ran into a thin shallow rocky spot it stepped down into what I believe was old faceted snow. The crown at the wind slab portion was 10-20 inches deep, then at the steeper portion of the slope it stepped down to 3 feet deep in places and about 60 feet wide in total width, running a few hundred feet producing a fairly decent debris pile. The avalanche took out a portion of the skin track and covered ski tracks from earlier in the day. Luckily nobody was underneath at the time it avalanched, as there was about 10-15 people in the area. Busy day in the Wasatch mountains.