Sawtooth Avalanche Center

Avalanche Occurrence

General Information

This is one portion of the crown of a large avalanche that was remotely triggered from many hundreds of feet away.

Observer:
SAC Forecaster

Verified by SAC?
Yes

Occurrence Date:
Dec 13, 2021 4:00 pm (Exact)

Location:
Baker Creek drainage

Comments:

I remotely triggered an impressive set of slides while traveling along a ridgeline. The slides failed in both wind-loaded and sheltered terrain. The furthest crown I could see was ~500' away, but I could see debris from the next path over, a distance of 1/4 mile from where I initiated the fracture. I listed the number of avalanches as 1, but there were a number of slopes that released in this single event.

Avalanche Characteristics

# of Avys:
1
Aspect:
NE (E,NE)
Start Zone Elev:
9200ft
Size:
D2
Type:
SS-Soft Slab
Trigger:
AS-Skier
r-Remote
Depth:
2ft
Weak Layer:
Dec 11, 2021 (FC)
Comments:

I did not get close enough to the crown to measure the depth, estimated at 60cm on sheltered slopes, over 100cm where wind loaded. The widest continuous crown I observed was an estimated 70m wide. This slide would have been much larger in more favorable terrain.

Media

This is one portion of the crown of a large avalanche that was remotely triggered from many hundreds of feet away.

Attachments

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