Observer Name
JWH
Observation Date
Sunday, November 17, 2013
Avalanche Date
Sunday, November 17, 2013
Region
Salt Lake » Park City Ridgeline » Deer Valley
Location Name or Route
Deer Valley - Top of Empire
Aspect
Northeast
Slope Angle
35°
Trigger
Unknown
Avalanche Type
Soft Slab
Avalanche Problem
Wind Drifted Snow
Weak Layer
New Snow/Old Snow Interface
Depth
2.5'
Width
40'
Vertical
30'
Comments
Took a nice walk on Sunday up Guardsman pass road and along the Deer Valley permitter up to the top of Empire Express chairlift. When I got to the top, I noticed this avalanche that presumably was a result of the wind deposit from Saturday's storm (see video - http://utahavalanchecenter.org/observations/observation-park-city-ridgeline-21). There was a skin track (not pictured) about 5-10 ft. lookers right of the flank heading up to McConkey's Bowl and also either a skin or ski track right at the crown/ flank interface. There was evidence of skis on the bed surface (just above debris - lookers right in photo). This avi could have occurred during the storm or been intentionally triggered from the top or remotely triggered by a party heading up the skin track. My best guess was that it was one of the latter options and probably occurred Sunday morning. I was not able to closely examine the crown/ weak layer as my attention was quickly directed to my dog who was "warmly" welcoming other ski tourers to the peak.
Coordinates