Just wanted to offer a few clarifying points and some other food for thought since there's still much incomplete info we're speculating on.
Chair peak is just over 6200', the living snoqualmie story (which is written by a local blogger here in the valley, and though a great piece of sometimes local news/gossip, is not a stand alone source of news) stated the slide ran from 6200' on the north aspect. If this is accurate this means the north face, a popular alpine climbing route, went above the party. And if this is accurate, they were trapped in an exposed area which had greater consequences for them than the slope/slab/angle/tress vs. open slope we're quick to jump to.
After enjoying the storm of the season here last week, I had the good fortune to spend the last two day in the baker bc while teaching some courses that heavily discussed red flags and terrain selection. If this party's observations were similar to mine, there might have been different days in which they were shocked by the stability observed and tested relative to obvious flags created from the storm #'s and avy forecast and as such, used their judgement and experience to venture beyond the 20 degree woods. If if this has any accuracy, then a reminder is good for all of us that terrain traps live heavily above us too. But then again, I am also speculating.
Griff, sorry brother, but your geography's a bit off. Skiers in photo are under the NE buttress of chair, venturing out under north face. They would have come from chair east basin (above source), which is behind them and down a few 100'. Bryant couloir leaves from source basin, but can take you up and around behind chair (if doing clockwise circumnav). None of those zones around Source/Chair east basin should be considered "safe" to play in by any stretch of the imagination, but instead a shooting gallery of 5+ active slide paths IMO. I do agree that one never knows, that's the magic of it when the science stops! Glad you and the flying kid were out getting after it, perhaps ill see you before the April powder storms this year!
Be safe y'all, study hard, look for yourself and point your tips and be brave!
