Photo from today, 3-16-21. Note the crown face on down into the gully and running full-length of the gully.
Photo from today, 3-16-21. note the wind-loading along the western edge of this long and deeply incised gully.
Observation: Hatcher Pass
Location: Sunnyside Hatch Peak (south aspect of East Ridge of Hatch Peak)
The persistent slab avalanche that was human-triggered Saturday (3/13/21) on the Sunnyside of Hatch Peak has been previously reported. It’s worth noting that this Friday 3/19/21 will be the 10-year anniversary of a fatal avalanche at this very location. Ten years ago, two skiers were caught in a slab release above one of these deeply incised gullies and carried downslope. One managed to swim to the side and survived; the other was engulfed, carried to the bottom of the drainage and buried under 15 feet of snow. He did not survive. The attached photos show some additional detail regarding wind loading along the western edges of the gullies and how the avalanche propagated along almost the full length of the gully.