Front Range

Avalanche

Oliver Deshler · Jan 12, 2023 · Front Range

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Weather

Clear, sunny, warm January day. Wind loading noted on the ridge line of the southeast face of Mt Trelease. Light winds in the trees

Snowpack

9 inches of new snow overlying a 2-3 foot deep consolidated slab over a foot or so of depth hoar.

Avalanche

We were transitioning at the top of the popular tree runs below the SE face of Mt Trelease when I looked up and saw the face avalanche. We quickly grabbed our packs and started skiing as the powder cloud approached. The debris stopped about 100 yards from where we had stopped to transition (which was very low on the slope). We were happy we’d given the face such a wide berth. We searched the debris with a few others that were out there and didn’t pick up any signals. The debris did cover a few skin tracks from earlier in the day. The crown in its deepest location was probably over 10 feet tall.