Aspen
AvalancheMathias Gruber · Feb 23, 2023 · Aspen
Weather
Snowing on and off, about -15c, moderate but very sporadic winds.
Snowpack
Well over a foot of new snow in the last 48 hours, much more heavily loaded in places, sitting on a crust/facet combo.
Avalanche
I dropped first into the skiers left edge of a NE facing chute, dropping from the ridgeline at about 9800ft. with the expectation of darting in and out of the treed rib to the left of me and accepting the possibly triggering small pockets of storm slab. Instead, after I had made a few turns at the edge of the path and was beginning to gain confidence in the snow, the slab broke all around me and carried me for about 150ft before I managed to ski out of it. I was surprised, shaken up, but unharmed. The end of the debris settled at about 8500ft.