UDOT PLANNED AVALANCHE CLOSURES!!

Avalanche: North Fork Seeley Canyon

Observer Name
Kobernik
Observation Date
Sunday, February 3, 2013
Avalanche Date
Saturday, February 2, 2013
Region
Skyline » Huntington Canyon » Left Fork Huntington Canyon » Seeley Canyon » North Fork Seeley Canyon
Location Name or Route
Upper north bowl
Elevation
10,400'
Aspect
Northeast
Slope Angle
40°
Trigger
Snowmobiler
Avalanche Type
Soft Slab
Avalanche Problem
Persistent Weak Layer
Weak Layer
Facets
Depth
2'
Width
200'
Vertical
400'
Comments
This was number three of three snowmobiler triggered avalanches that I stumbled across in Seeley Canyon. I'm guessing that they were all triggered by the same group as there were not many tracks in the drainage. I was a bit surprised to see that they broke into older faceted snow. However, upon inspection, it makes sense at these locations. The upper bowls along the Skyline receive a good amount of wind damage. This sometimes erodes snow leaving a very shallow snowpack that is easily subject to faceting. No doubt, that was the case. All of these avalanches were in areas where there was only about a foot of old snow which was quite faceted. Many areas had over 3 feet of snow prior to this storm and have a much better structure.
Coordinates