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Skier survives Utah avalanche and captures breathtaking footage

The avalanche occurred on Gobblers Knob, the highest point in the Mount Olympus Wilderness.

(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Mount Raymond up Big Cottonwood Canyon in 2015.

  | Jan. 31, 2024, 1:00 p.m.
| Updated: 5:14 p.m.

A skier triggered and survived an avalanche on the Wasatch Front this weekend — and managed to video the whole thing.

According to the Utah Avalanche Center (UAC), three skiers made their way to the summit of Gobblers Knob — which stands at 10,246 feet in the Mount Olympus Wilderness — on Sunday.

UAC reported that one of the skiers caused a hard slab avalanche, in which the snow retains its shape as it slides, after entering Davis Gulch. The skier slid 650 vertical feet, reaching 27 mph in the fall. They lost a ski pole and had to retrieve a ski at the end.

Following this avalanche, another avalanche caused the whole west side of Davis Gulch to slide. The final debris pile was 500 feet wide and the avalanche traveled 2,000 feet, according to UAC’s estimates.