Observer Name
Erik Syrstad
Observation Date
Friday, April 21, 2023
Avalanche Date
Friday, April 21, 2023
Region
Logan » Franklin Basin » Steam Mill
Location Name or Route
Steam Mill
Elevation
9,100'
Aspect
Northeast
Slope Angle
Unknown
Trigger
Skier
Trigger: additional info
Intentionally Triggered
Avalanche Type
Soft Slab
Avalanche Problem
New Snow
Weak Layer
New Snow
Depth
4"
Width
60'
Vertical
Unknown
Comments
This was an intentional trigger from a ski cut off the ridge just north of Steam Mill Peak. Crown depth varied from 1 to 6". The new dense snow was not bonding well - lots of cracking and easy shears along the uptrack. Quite a bit of wind out there today, even in sheltered areas. Some graupel. Skiing was fairly 'meh' thanks to the inverted and slabby conditions.
I'd expect this storm snow instability to settle out rapidly, and I didn't see any signs of deeper issues down at the crust layer... however, there is now enough cold snow from the past few storms (~15" at 9k feet in this location) sitting on top of this bombproof crust that I'll be wary of the sun warming and waking up this slab as the weekend progresses...
Coordinates