Blower on Blackomb

adamrodrigues11 , Sunday 26th March, 2023 1:30PM

Day started off cold with thin cloud cover that became more sparse in the afternoon. We went spearhead -> stairmaster -> foon alley -> phalanx N bowl and out. About 25cm of dry recent snow above 2000m with more on lee slopes. No signs of slab activity up high. South facing slopes on the skin towards stair masters though had a prominent crust beneath the storm snow, and the snow was already becoming cohesive as we crossed - we would have turned around if there was any direct sun. The supportive melt freeze crust from last week started around 1900m in the N bowl. Only about 15cm on top of the crust the whole way around the bench at 1800m. We witnessed multiple size 1-1.5 natural avalanches near the prominent cliff (see the pin on map) that we assume ran during Friday’s snowfall.

Snow conditions were: Crusty, Deep powder, Powder. Weather conditions were: Cloudy, Cold, Sunny. We rode: Alpine slopes, Mellow slopes, Steep slopes. We avoided: Sunny slopes. Riding quality was good.

Avalache Conditions: Slab avalanches today or yesterday.

Avalanche

Looked like point releases off steep cliffs triggered multiple natural avalanches that slid on the melt freeze crust. Debris was soft but dense and the lee aspect lead us to suspect the avalanches were wind slabs. We couldn’t find any facets on top of the crust where we were travelling, but we did not take a close look near any crowns. Forgot to snap some photos.