Avalanche
- Slab Width
- 18 m
- Weak Layer
- Facets
- Trigger Type
- Skier
- Vertical Fall
- 9 m
- Avalanche Type
- Soft Slab
- Slab Thickness
- 5 cm
- Start Zone Aspect
- North
- Avalanche Problem
- Persistent Weak Layer
- Start Zone Elevation
- 2530 m
Today, while teaching an avalanche education course, my students and I came across a suspected recent avalanche (no newly wind drifted snow on the bed surface or near the crown like we saw on avalanches nearby of similar elevation and aspect). This was observed in the terrain trap (gully) on the standard approach to Powder Park III. While we're seeing a lot of large scale avalanches, this is a great reminder that our smaller pieces of avalanche terrain also possess instability. Even a small slide (D1) combined with a terrain trap can have serious consequences. The crown was 1-2' feet deep and approximately 60' wide, and it ran on faceted snow (1.5-2mm buried NSF) from our January drought. Unknown trigger - I assume skier triggered or remotely triggered considering the tracks nearby. It appeared as if someone then skied over the crown and onto the bed surface.