Avalanche: Summit

Location: Road Observations - Butch and Fresno

Date:
Observer:
Route & General Observations

A quick drive through Summit Lake revealed two new natural avalanches sometime on April 1st or 2nd.

The first avalanche was a storm slab on Fresno (Easterly facing at ~3,000′). This looks to have stepped down into old weak layers (possibly depth hoar which is prevalent in the area). Propagation was not significant with this slide.

The second slab avalanche was on Butch Mtn (Westerly facing at ~4,000′). Roughly a 2′ crown with significant propagation. This slide looks to have been triggered by a cornice fall then sympathetically triggered a slab on a lower sub-ridge (looker’s right). Look closely at photos below.

Avalanche Details
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Trigger NaturalRemote Trigger0
Avalanche Type Hard SlabAspect Unknown
ElevationunknownSlope Angleunknown
Crown DepthunknownWidthunknown
Vertical Rununknown  
Avalanche Details

Details above.

Red Flags
Red flags are simple visual clues that are a sign of potential avalanche danger. Please record any sign of red flags below.
Obvious signs of instability
Recent Avalanches?Yes
Collapsing (Whumphing)?No
Cracking (Shooting cracks)?No
Observer Comments

Recent avalanches continue despite quieter weather.

Photos & Video
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