"It was quickly realized that the two young men were very lucky, with neither of them carrying any of the essential avalanche gear needed when skiing in the backcountry. As suspected in initial observations, it was confirmed that one skier was partially buried and able to dig himself out, while other was fully buried, face-down in the snow, with only a ski boot surfacing above the debris pile."
"The Utah Avalanche Center made sure to use this incident to highlight the dangers of exiting resort boundaries in search for powder. Both skiers involved are pass-holders at Brighton, and know the Hidden Canyon terrain well, according to the center. Prior to the avalanche, they had already skied one successful lap, before taking a lift back up in order to access the canyon once more."
Two Brighton pass-holders triggered a skier-triggered avalanche in Hidden Canyon just beyond resort boundaries on January 4. The avalanche ran roughly 600 feet, with an approximate width of 200 feet, a depth of three feet, and occurred near 10,200 feet elevation. Brighton Ski Patrol announced "You are not in trouble" while gathering information. The two involved males, ages 17 and 18, carried no essential avalanche gear. One skier was partially buried and self-extricated; the other was fully buried face-down with a ski boot visible and was dug out by a witness carrying avalanche equipment. Both skiers sustained no significant injuries and walked away. The Utah Avalanche Center emphasized the danger of leaving ski area boundaries and noted the skiers had already skied one lap before returning by lift to access the canyon again.
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