| Trigger | Natural | Remote Trigger | No |
| Avalanche Type | Soft Slab | Aspect | Northwest |
| Elevation | 3800ft | Slope Angle | 45deg |
| Crown Depth | 10in | Width | 40ft |
| Vertical Run | 600ft |
Avalanche: Chugach State Park
Location: Arctic Valley
We skied a north aspect at Arctic Valley today. Lots of people out having fun and staying distanced. Springtime in Alaska!
Avalanche Details
The top of our run had a very small fresh windslab that stayed stuck to the slope as we ski tested it. Lower on our run, below the rocks, we skied through a fresh natural avalanche on a wider slope. We chose this run because were able to follow the track of this fresh avalanche to gain access to the lower angle good powder below. The avalanche looked to be new snow from the past couple days that avalanched off and travelled far down the hill. A nearby skier ski triggered a similar avalanche in steep rocks, but was not caught.
Obvious signs of instability
| Recent Avalanches? | Yes |
| Collapsing (Whumphing)? | No |
| Cracking (Shooting cracks)? | No |
Observer Comments
Wind loading.
Weather
Mostly sunny going to mostly cloudy. Ridgetop winds at about 20 mph. Temp in the low 30's.
Snow surface
Soft and moist powder. Some wind sculpting, but amazing skiing.
Snowpack
The new moist hot pow felt a bit slabby on top of weaker snow. Otherwise the snowpack was variable: deep, rock hard, layered, tundra....
The avalanches aren't visible in this photo, but they're up there below the rocks.