Avalanche: Turnagain

Location: Sunburst

Date:
Observer:
Route & General Observations

Standard tour up the Sunburst Ridge to 3,200′

Avalanche Details
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Trigger SkierRemote Trigger0
Avalanche Type Soft SlabAspect South Southwest
Elevation 2800ftSlope Angleunknown
Crown Depth 10inWidth 100ft
Vertical Run 400ft  
Avalanche Details

A skier triggered a soft slab avalanche part way down the Sunburst SW face. Dimensions above. There are still several steep-ish rollovers on the common SW face that were not triggered the day prior. Today, the skier pulled out one of the remaining pockets on this front face. Weak layer was 1cm buried surface hoar.

**There is still plenty of snow to slide to the East toward the weather station.

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)?Yes
Observer Comments

One recent avalanche noted above.

Cracking in the snow was minimal along the ridge but more apparent 100 feet or so off the ridgeline on the SW face.

Weather & Snow Characteristics
Please provide details to help us determine the weather and snowpack during the time this observation took place.
Weather

Partly cloudy skies, turning sunny in the afternoon with valley fog. Wind was light and variable. No precip.

Snow surface

Soft settled powder.

Snowpack

Buried surface hoar sits 5-10" below the top layer of soft snow from the Nov 17th storm. This layer is responsible for all the avalanche activity. Below the buried surface hoar the snowpack is strong.

Photos & Video
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