Avalanche hits snowmobilers in Canyon Creek

Four people on snowmobiles made it out safely on Saturday, Feb. 15, after an avalanche partially buried them in the Canyon Creek drainage just north of Whitefish Mountain Resort.

A snowmobiler triggered the avalanche in the Skook Chutes or Seven Sisters area on the south side of Mount Skookoleel.

According to the Flathead Avalanche Center, the slide was about 900 feet wide and ran 700 feet downhill.

“The avalanche failed on a layer of soft, faceted snow sitting on top of a hard, melt-freeze crust about 12 inches from the surface,” avalanche center investigators reported.

Avalanche debris crossed the groomed snowmobile trail along Canyon Creek Road and left debris about six feet deep on the road, according to the center.

The center issued a backcountry avalanche warning for the Flathead Range and portions of Glacier National Park on Monday.

“Heavy snowfall, strong winds, and expected continued heavy snow have created highly unstable conditions,” the center said in its advisory. “Natural and human triggered avalanches are likely.”