4 skiers caught in avalanche near Marble Peak avoid serious injuries

Four skiers caught in an avalanche near Marble Peak on Saturday escaped without any serious injuries.

A group of nine backcountry skiers and snowboarders intended to ski north-facing slopes on Raspberry Ridge near Marble when one of the skiers triggered an avalanche while descending the slope, according to the Colorado Avalanche Information Center (CAIC). Three skiers had successfully descended the slope and waited at the bottom when a fourth skier triggered the avalanche and was carried and partially buried in the snow.

“They moved into a piece of terrain that faces north, which is one of our more problematic aspects because it harbors very weak, early-season snow near the ground,” said Brian Lazar, the deputy director of CAIC, in a phone call with The Aspen Times. “Those northerly aspects have been particularly worrisome for us since essentially the late October snowfall.”

The skier that triggered the avalanche went further right than the first three skiers, which “propagated across the whole terrain feature and resulted in a fairly sizable avalanche,” he said. They were able to get themselves out of the snow after being partially buried.

One of the three skiers waiting at the bottom of the slope was hit by the avalanche from behind and traveled about 100 feet down the slope before getting out of the snow. The other two were partially buried, but their airways were not restricted, he said.

Some of the skiers lost skis and poles during the avalanche, but none were seriously injured.

Lazar commended the skiers for sharing their stories with CAIC because it helps the center and other backcountry skiers and snowboarders understand the current avalanche conditions in the area. People can check CAIC’s app or website for up-to-date avalanche conditions when they plan to ski or snowboard in the backcountry, he said.

“It’s really easy for people to not talk about these things and try to bury them,” he said. “You open yourself up to all kinds of criticism and really nasty comments, so I want to applaud these folks for being willing to share their stories, so that other people can learn from them.”