Northern Bridgers Avalanche

The Throne
Bridger Range
Code
SS-AFu-R3-D2-O
Elevation
7600
Aspect
NE
Latitude
45.87450
Longitude
-110.95000
Notes

A skier unintentionally triggered a slab avalanche in the northern Bridgers. The group did not notice any avalanche activity on the snowmobile ride in to the zone. They dug a pit and found poor snow structure and propagation in the new snow layer in stability tests. From the email: "About halfway up my hike I heard a wumpf and started getting carried down. I was carried about 90 yards, I got fully buried for the middle 30 yards but finally surfaced and came to a stop. My two friends were on their sleds over to the side of the face and had eyes on my the whole time. We all had the proper equipment but luckily didn’t need to use it. The crown broke about 20 yards above me, looked about 3.5 ft deep, it went across the 40 yard wide couloir and continued down and around some cliffs another 20 yards." Photo: C. Histon

Number of slides
1
Number caught
1
Number buried
0
Number killed
0
Avalanche Type
Soft slab avalanche
Trigger
Foot penetration
Trigger Modifier
u-An unintentional release
R size
3
D size
2
Bed Surface
O - Old snow
Problem Type
New Snow
Slab Thickness
42.0 inches
Vertical Fall
250ft
Slab Width
150.00ft
Slab Layer Grain Type
Precipitation Particles
Slab Thickness units
inches
Single / Multiple / Red Flag
Single Avalanche
Advisory Year