| Trigger | Natural | Remote Trigger | Unknown |
| Avalanche Type | Unknown | Aspect | Unknown |
| Elevation | unknown | Slope Angle | unknown |
| Crown Depth | unknown | Width | unknown |
| Vertical Run | unknown |
Avalanche: Turnagain
Location: Base of Seattle Ridge
Alaska Avalanche School Moto 2 field day. Followed the power line in search of sheltered snow for stability tests. Ended up near base of Seattle Ridge.
Avalanche Details
Wind slab avalanche seen north of the uptrack along Seattle Ridge.
Obvious signs of instability
| Recent Avalanches? | Yes |
| Collapsing (Whumphing)? | No |
| Cracking (Shooting cracks)? | No |
Observer Comments
Recent slide down front side of Seattle Ridge at ~1200 ft. Likely a wind slab release from higher up.
Weather
Warm and stormy! 37F with a 10 mph breeze and ~18 mph gusts. Overcast skies and occasional light rain.
Snow surface
Becoming saturated, mid-calf to knee boot penetration. Minimal re-freeze last night.
Snowpack
Dug two pits at 960 ft in a semi-sheltered area near trees (NW aspect, 10deg). Both showed unexpected and near identical results: CTN, ECT17P Q3 at BSH 35-40 cm down (170 cm from base). Was able to identify the buried surface hoar fairly easy in both pits. January facet layer was un-reactive.
We then traveled further up the ridge to 1100 ft in search of another example of BSH. Pit #3 was un-reactive with no buried surface hoar observed.
960 ft Pit Profile
960 ft Buried Surface Hoar
960 ft ECT17P Failure
Recent Wind Slab Release
Great Class & Great Group of Riders!