Vail & Summit County
AvalancheMarkian Feduschak · Dec 15, 2019 · Vail & Summit County
Weather
Overcast
Snowpack
Primariy 1-2', of new snow, facets near the ground. Hard wind slab on the summit and cornice.
Avalanche
Approaching the summit from the W, we were skinning on an approximate 10-15 degree windslap, intermixed with large talus. We heard a large wumpf and felt a collapse and continued to the summit. Below the typical cornice near the summit, facing E, we noticed sections of it had fallen and triggered an avalanche on the E facing slope. We were not able to look over the cornice until we dropped S off the summit and looked to the N as indicated in the photos. The crown was approximately 200' wide, and the avalanche started on a 35 degree slope, likely running 600' based on the legnth of the slope from personal experience and looking at CalTopo. The steepest part of the slope is up to 45 degrees. It appeared to be a size 3-4 and slid mostly to the depth of the talus field. This slide may have also triggered another slope approximately 600, to the S of this one in the bowl below the summit. I've been skiing Craig Pk for over 10 years regularly and never triggered a remote avalanche like this one on the E facing slopes. We skied W facing slopes, under 30 degrees, down to Fulford Cave, without mishap.