Field Report

Vail & Summit County - CO

2024/12/31
Lat: 39.682, Lon: -105.935
Backcountry Area: Vail & Summit County
Organization: Anonymous

Report Information

Observation Summary

Cold temps and light winds up along the continental divide today. From being in the same zone two days prior, the eastern aspects had visibly taken on more load. I noticed two avalanches back in the valley under Golden Bear Peak on a western aspect that were not there two days prior.

On our fourth lap at 1pm, we observed a party of two snowboarders ascending on a section of exposed ground to reach the ridge above where we were riding. As we rounded the corner on the skin track and gained full view of the terrain we noticed a solo skier digging a pit on a loaded northeast aspect adjacent to where the two snowboards climbed.
At that time, we noticed one of the snowboarders start riding down from the ridge, remote triggering an avalanche beneath him on the northeast slope connected to where the skier was digging the pit. The fracture line of the avalanche extended hundreds of feet, and completely across the section where the skier was digging the pit. We yelled to the skier to get out from where he was asap. We continued to watch to make sure the party of snowboarders and skier safely descended.

CAIC Notes

The remotely triggered avalanche near the solo skier was previously recorded in this observation: https://avalanche.state.co.us/report/dbb680c8-8bc5-4993-8fc2-ea47a5e362a3

Avalanche

Triggered avalanche
i
Expand to see more details
Date # Elev Asp Type Trig SizeR SizeD Problem Type Location
12/30/2024
2 >TL W N D1

Snowpack

Cracking: Shooting
Collapsing: Moderate

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