Accident Report
West Fork Clear Creek, northeast of Jones Pass - CO
1 backcountry tourer caught - not buried - 2024/12/20
Backcountry Area: Front Range
Status: Final Report
Published: 2024/12/23
Authors: Public Report - Updated by CAIC Staff
Accident Summary
Observation Summary
Oomfs 😳🙊 we tickled the dragon 🐲🐉 in a below treeline wind slab. Skiing with a partner and I hit a weak spot near a convex roll. As I initiated the turn I heard a woosh and the snow around me started to move. It caught up with me and I basically sat on top of it. It was a small wind slab; maybe about 12-15 feet wide. The wind slab itself was about 8 inches thick of medium density sitting on top light snow.
I was uninjured. I clicked out of one ski. Poking around the area could feel more of the same wind slab. Luckily it was small.
We were on a northerly aspect at Jones Pass. This terrain is frequently skied.
We were able to confirm the forecast.
Avalanche
Caught in an avalanche
|
i
Expand to see more details
|
Date | # | Elev | Asp | Type | Trig | SizeR | SizeD | Problem Type | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
12/20/2024
|
1 | TL | N | HS | AS/u | R1 | D1 | |||
|
Date, Time & Site
Date and Time
12/20/2024 -
12:00pm
(known) Comments
Incident
Yes
|
||||||||||
Snowpack
Cracking:
Minor
Collapsing:
Minor