Observer Name
Bill Nalli
Observation Date
Tuesday, January 11, 2022
Avalanche Date
Friday, January 7, 2022
Region
Salt Lake » Little Cottonwood Canyon » White Pine » Lake Peak
Location Name or Route
White Pine Lake Peak NE
Elevation
10,600'
Aspect
Northeast
Slope Angle
39°
Trigger
Natural
Avalanche Type
Hard Slab
Avalanche Problem
Persistent Weak Layer
Weak Layer
Depth Hoar
Depth
4'
Width
500'
Vertical
Unknown
Comments
This slide on the NE aspect of Lake Peak likely occurred on Jan 6 or 7 at the end of the last big storm cycle. Most of the path has just a few inches of snow on top of the bed surface and I could not find any old faceted snow left where I dug near the crown. Portions of the path on the skiers right have much more snow reloaded since it slid highlighting the variability in HS.
Pic 1 Lake Peak NE face
Pic 2 skiers left with just a few inches of new snow and a weakening snow surface
Pic 3 center and skiers left over 1 meter of new windblown snow
Comments
Other notable avalanches that occurred likely during the cycle prior to Jan 6 were seen on the N aspect of Lake Peak at 10,500', 400' wide (pic 1), and on a NE aspect above the Dog Dish at 10,000', 400' wide (pic 2). A bit hard to pick out in the photos but crowns were clearly visible below the cliff bands.
Coordinates