Vail & Summit County
Avalanchemark koelker · Nov 19, 2014 · Vail & Summit County
Weather
Blue sky, 25 degrees, wind out of the west.
Snowpack
Slight wind blown crust, still soft
Avalanche
Around 12,200ft maybe a day or two old on the north facing slope just west of the saddle. There was another old small movement on a north/northeast aspect just a bit further west along the same ridge. Made the mistake of being up there in the first place. Dropped in from around 12,250. Had a false sense of security from past seasons on these lines. Thought it was true west facing, it is northwest facing. Partner dropped first and successfully descended. I was half way down and it broke from the top of the line and carried me to the bottom. Luckily I was able to stay mostly on top of the slide and as it slowed, righted myself and rode out. I know the mistakes we made were much too obvious and I'm not sure why the decisions were made. Want to apologize to anyone who may be offended by our decisions and I'm very thankful no one was hurt.