Check out our Holiday Auction - Sign Up for the Utah Snow and Avalanche Workshop (USAW)

Avalanche: Chicken Sh#! Ridge

Observer Name
MF
Observation Date
Sunday, January 15, 2023
Avalanche Date
Sunday, January 15, 2023
Region
Salt Lake » Big Cottonwood Canyon » Days Fork » Chicken Sh#! Ridge
Location Name or Route
Chicken Sh!t Ridge
Elevation
9,400'
Aspect
Northeast
Trigger
Skier
Avalanche Type
Soft Slab
Avalanche Problem
New Snow
Depth
12"
Width
300'
Vertical
300'
Comments
Very touchy and reactive storm slabs all over CSR around 1p today during high PI rates. Not much wind on the way up, but at the very top, the wind was cranking over the ridge from the southwest, transporting more snow. While moving across the very top of the Draw a small storm slab pulled out and ran loose slough past me well down into the draw out of sight (no signs of people or tracks into the draw at that time). We decided to ski CSR mostly on the ridge itself due to the sensitivity of things. Many small sloughs were running even there on lower angle, and some more connected small pieces would run as well, and then this big, well-connected slide was triggered when partner pulled up above a rollover that got a bit steeper below. It sympathetically triggered another big piece around a small subridge as well. Ran down some few hundred vert through trees below us and out of sight. It did not hit the skin track or anyone below. We expected localized new snow instabilities, but not these well connected pieces and full-go storm slabs.
Coordinates