Observer Name
Michael
Observation Date
Monday, February 24, 2014
Avalanche Date
Friday, February 14, 2014
Region
Salt Lake » Big Cottonwood Canyon » Mill D North » Lake Desolation
Location Name or Route
Mill D North -- Desolation Lake area
Elevation
9,600'
Aspect
Northeast
Slope Angle
39°
Trigger
Natural
Avalanche Type
Hard Slab
Depth
5'
Width
200'
Vertical
400'
Comments
While snowshoeing above Desolation Lake I noticed an avalanche to my left above the Lake. The slide was difficult to notice from below as it was obscured by tall pines. I snowshoed to the location and was able to take some nice pictures. The fracture point at the top of the slide was 4' to 5' deep and ran through pines with some pretty decent force. The terminus was several feet deep up to 6'+ in a couple of locations. This was a fairly large slide and one that certainly wouldn't have been fun to be involved with considering its size and potentially being strained through large pines along the slides path. The date of 2/22/14 was an estimate but there was an inch or two of new snow on the slides path which ties well into last weeks storm cycle.
Video