Accident Report

Mount Justice, south of Marble - CO

1 backcountry tourer caught - not buried - 2024/12/29
Lat: 39.0261029, Lon: -107.1700766
Backcountry Area: Aspen
Status: Preliminary Information
Published: 2024/12/31

Accident Summary

Observation Summary

Our group ended up skiing too far past the standard egress resulting in a decision to ski a short, steeper section to return to the desired side of the main drainage. Upon triggering separate avalanches remotely earlier in the day, we were aware of the danger, and chose this option knowing the slope may fail. I skied across the slope, feeling the slab slow beneath my feet, slowing me down as I cut across. The slab failed from above me and I was briefly knocked off my feet but stayed on top of the snow. There was very low energy of the moving snow. I was able to stand upright almost immediately and ski down to trees below. The avalanche only moved 15-20 feet downhill. Height of crown was estimated at 16-20 inches, length of crown was approximately 50-60 feet wide.

CAIC Notes

Remotely triggered avalanches coded in this field report: https://avalanche.state.co.us/report/8f3971cd-9efd-4fa6-ae8d-d655b58f1ec0

Route Description

Up standard Justice skinner. Egress followed similar path.

Avalanche

Triggered avalanche
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Date # Elev Asp Type Trig SizeR SizeD Problem Type
12/29/2024
1 <TL NE SS AS/u R2 D1.5 Persistent Slab

Snowpack

Cracking: Shooting
Collapsing: None

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