Avalanche

Avalanche: Flagstaff Gully

Zach and BenSalt Lake
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Avalanche

Slab Width
3 m
Weak Layer
New Snow/Old Snow Interface
Trigger Type
Skier
Avalanche Type
Soft Slab
Slab Thickness
25 cm
Start Zone Aspect
South
Avalanche Problem
Wind Slab
Start Zone Elevation
2987 m

Skiing back to the car, we triggered two very small avalanches while skiing. Both were storm slabs about 5-10' across and 8"-12" deep. Both ran about 100' on a slope angle between 35 and 40*. Both ran on the new snow surface, on top of a sun crust that was also very feel-able while skiing.

Earlier in the tour we skied NE aspects in Upper Days (two dogs, etc.) but didn't notice any signs of instability.

Throughout the tour we experienced winds generally sustained 20-ish mph from generally northerly direction. Light snowfall - about an inch on the car after a 2.5 hr tour.