Vail & Summit County

Avalanche

Jaime Zinn · Apr 16, 2019 · Vail & Summit County

Weather

High winds and blowing snow from midday into the afternoon at about 12,000 feet.

Snowpack

Eastern facing aspects had 12+ inches new snow from wind loading.

Avalanche

**This appears to have been already reported as a natural slide (https://avalanche.state.co.us/caic/obs/obs_report.php?obs_id=56346). The two crowns are actually a single, skier-triggered release.** The chute entry began as very hard packed snow, and turned to very soft new snow upon entering the couloir. The crown broke ~10 feet above me almost immediately on entering the couloir, burying me before I could shout out a warning. My left ski released, but I was able to get an edge on my right ski get above the surface and ride out the last 1/3 of the couloir. I lost a pole but was able to retrieve the released ski and ski out. My experience sounds startlingly similar to this report on the same day. (https://avalanche.state.co.us/caic/obs/obs_report.php?obs_id=56335) I agree with their closing statement. "It was hard to distinguish [between] nervousness about the ski route and a dispassionate analysis of conditions. We thought we were overcoming the fear of the line and suboptimal weather when, in reality, we were placing ourselves in danger of a wind slab. Additionally, most of the couloir did appear sheltered from the wind as anticipated and had great stable snow. But it was the top 50 feet of the route that counted today, and that's where the slab had developed."