Observer Name
Grant Helgeson / Ted Scroggin
Observation Date
Friday, January 21, 2011
Avalanche Date
Thursday, January 20, 2011
Region
Ogden » Weber Canyon » Smith and Morehouse
Location Name or Route
Smith Morehouse
Elevation
9,500'
Aspect
Northeast
Slope Angle
Unknown
Trigger
Skier
Trigger: additional info
Remotely Triggered
Avalanche Type
Hard Slab
Weak Layer
Surface Hoar
Depth
Unknown
Width
1,000'
Vertical
500'
Comments
Yesterday a touring party remote triggered this very large avalanche. Ted and I spotted it from the top of Windy Peak this afternoon and got a few rough measurements. This avalanche was of a different breed than the others we observed in the Whitney Basin. It looks like surface hoar is the culprit. Why? The avalanche obviously failed on a very well connected & widespread layer. It reached up into the tops of the subridges, and ran almost full path. The debris field was also quite large. Last, surface hoar is notorious for remote triggering, part of what makes it so dangerous.
Big thanks to the touring party for giving us a heads up on this avalanche. If tomorrow wasn't a storm day, I'd love to go and check it out!
Coordinates