Quick report
- Slope Angle
- 38°
Avalanche
- Slab Width
- 61 m
- Weak Layer
- Density Change
- Trigger Type
- Skier
- Vertical Fall
- 76 m
- Avalanche Type
- Soft Slab
- Slab Thickness
- 30 cm
- Trigger Detail
- Intentionally Triggered
- Start Zone Aspect
- Northeast
- Avalanche Problem
- New Snow
- Start Zone Elevation
- 3139 m
Slab seemed to fail on a density inversion in the new snow just above the old snow interface. Wind likely added some stiffness to the slab but the slope was not tremendously loaded. Ski cut was preformed higher on the slope where the slope was approximately 35 degrees where shooting cracks appeared and triggered the slide another 50' down slope where it was a touch steeper. The slide then propagated up and around the corner cleaning out the next chute skiers right as well. Triggered another similar avalanche above Lake Martha on a East aspect on a slope that was perhaps a bit more loaded (18'' deep, 100' wide, sorry no photo due to very poor visibility). This slide was triggered from about 100' above the roll and slid and had a far more firm bed surface which it ran on. All in all both were fairly predictable avalanches given the inversion in the new snow, the wind, intense precipitation, and shooting cracks observed in the time leading up to them both. Stability was Poor.