Avalanche: Summit

Location: Tenderfoot Ridge and Tenderfoot Creek

Date:
Observer:
Route & General Observations

Toured up the standard route up Tenderfoot Ridge and traversed along the ridge past the normal turn around spot. Dug two pits on the South/South West facing slope. HS just under 100 cm. Basal facets appeared to be healing as they were growing together and were not sugary. They were in fact relatively hard to scrape off and separate and look as if they warmed and melted together. Moderate ECT with no propagation. Dropped into Tenderfoot Creek and toured up the valley to ski the chutes off of Tri-Tip that face the creek. Two natural avalanches that ran on the ground observed on Tenderfoot at the back of the bowl. Active wind slabs being formed in the chutes and on Tenderfoot Ridge.

Avalanche Details
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Trigger NaturalRemote Trigger0
Avalanche Type0Aspect Southwest
Elevation 4200ftSlope Angleunknown
Crown Depth3ftWidth 100ft
Vertical Rununknown  
Avalanche Details

Two observed avalanches, both natural triggers and within the past few days. They both triggered directly underneath cornices but the cornice appeared to stay in place. Bad visibility with high winds, blowing snow and flat light made observing difficult. Both failed on the ground assuming on the basal facets. They both ran all the way to the valley floor.

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

High winds and lots of wind transported snow. Temperatures in the teens.