Avalanche: Wilson Peak

Observer Name
Timothy Myers
Observation Date
Sunday, February 2, 2020
Avalanche Date
Saturday, February 1, 2020
Region
Salt Lake » Big Cottonwood Canyon » Wilson Peak
Location Name or Route
Wilson Peak (South Facing)
Elevation
9,000'
Aspect
South
Trigger
Skier
Avalanche Type
Wet Loose
Avalanche Problem
Wet Snow
Depth
8"
Width
50'
Vertical
200'
Comments
Today I triggered a 50 day wide wet slide. It traveled about 200 ft and stopped at the base of the peak in a grove of aspen. The slide occurred just before noon. We had skied Wilson chutes and were making our way back to Butler Fork trailhead. We (two skiers, one splitboarder) chose to ski the south aspect of Wilson peak as our exit. The snow was warming up and top layer began to move. One by one, we decided to traverse the south aspect until we got to about 9000 ft. I moved quickly down the last section and because of the aspen, I couldn’t help but to ski the steeper face. I stopped at the bottom and looked up at the slide that had occurred and was still moving. It was piling up at the base in a grove of aspen. I was several yards away and protected from being hit. The slide was mostly the new snow from last week (8 inch layer), but where it was piling up was deep enough to bury someone.