Dec 14, 2014, Mt. Rainier, Pan Point small avy

We left the lot at about 10:00 and were skinning up Pan Point about 11, and we traversed left about half way up to go around the top. Just a little past that point I skinned over a west-facing convex feature that was probably 30 degrees. The slope broke 15' above me and was probably 40' wide. It was a cohesive wind slab that didn't move very far or fast. I did have to sit down and was able to dig my whippet in, which stopped me about the same time the slide stopped. Scared the crap out of me for about 3 seconds until I realized how slow moving it was and that it didn't have far to go. The first photo below shows the crown of 12-18" and the second is the debris after the fact. It was clearly a wind slab - you can see the snow blowing from the east in the first photo. I was kicking myself for not assessing the risk given the wind direction, convexity and steepness, so it was a good reminder to always be aware.

We dropped in to the Paradise glacier about 30 minutes later and skied over toward Stevens Creek. Better snow, less wind and no movement observed there. Last photo was of the fine powder lines we had to finish the day.