Poor judgement in Sonar bowl

Quick report

Liam Martin · Mar 8, 2024 · Central Selkirk

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Observation photo 1

Avalanche

Run Length
200
Trigger Type
skier
Wind Exposure
leeSlope
Avalanche Size
1.5
Trigger Sub Type
accidental
Start Zone Aspect
NE
Vegetation Cover
openSlope
Avalanche Character
windSlab
Number Of Avalanches
1
Start Zone Elevation
2200
Avalanche Occurrence Datetime
2024-03-08T20:00:00.000Z

Picked a familiar entrance point into Sonar bowl. The entrance is NE facing and the winds had been mainly S over the last 24 hours. I performed 3 ski cuts at the top and although a crust was evident, there were no signs of slipping. After 3-4 more turns, a cracked appeared above me and followed me as a tried to traverse left. Luckily the slab was no thicker than 6” and it was easy to stay on top of. As we continued down the bowl towards the trees, there is a section of 35-40 degree slope, N/ NE facing that was also very reactive. The crust persisted until we reached the trees at approx 1800m elevation.