Skier Avalanche Fatality, Henderson Bench, Cooke City - 12 Dec 2016

Montana & Utah Avalanche Fatalities / January 21 & 24, 2016 / Snowmobile / Skier

http://www.flatheadavalanche.org/sites/default/files/20160124_swedecreekavalaccidentreport_final.pdf


This is a very good report that helps one understand a bit more of what happens in the moments right after things go terribly wrong. This is a second avalanche and report that happened in Utah. Both valuable sources of info. RIP and condolences to all involved. Be careful out there in the mountains...


 https://utahavalanchecenter.org/avalanches/26182

CLICK ON PICTURE TO ENLARGE!!
Photo from my trip to Colorado this week, the view from our backcountry cabin. Notice the natural slide on the slope. These are east facing slopes which are the wind loaded aspects. Storm a few days ago with big winds loaded the east facing mountain.

This is a link to the Colorado / USA Avalanche site that is also a link on my blog site. Check it out.

 http://avalanche.state.co.us/accidents/us/

I am using this information for myself as a learning tool. We just returned home after a trip into the backcountry mountains of Colorado. We encountered slope situations and I like the fact that we quickly discuss our next move. One can not be correct 100% of the time...but you better be correct in each decision that you are making at that present time so you can come back alive.  

Where to dig a snowpit

Going to travel to Montana overnight tonight. This is what we will be looking for while we are in the mountains around Bozeman, Montana over the next 4 days. I'll be snowboarding and sledboarding, bringing the snowmobile.

I'll post pictures and stories during the trip. Have a good week.

Colorado Avalanche Report / November 11, 2012 Snow Storm

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Statewide Avalanche Conditions

Issued: 11/12/2012 5:02 AM by Scott Toepfer

Expires: 11/13/2012 12:00 PM

Highlights

The first major winter storm of the season hit Colorado on Friday and Saturday. Areas favored with snowfall from southwesterly flow did best from this storm. Wolf Creek Pass reported 19" of snow from the storm. Outside of Crested Butte 17" of snow from the storm, and along the Highway 550 corridor in the San Juans from 7.5" to 12.5" of snow was reported at historical snow stakes. Reports indicated significantly more wind drifted snow in wind loaded areas from all these areas. Strong winds accompanied the storm, and as you can expect, a number of avalanches were reported. We've received great observations today. You can use the Observations>Observation Reports>Weather Stations page to track the snowfall through the day at your favorite weather stations. We all anticipated snowfall with this storm, and folks got out into avalanche terrain. It is easy to discount the avalanche potential when there is just a few feet of drifted snow, with grass and flower stalks poking through. Do not get lulled into a sense of complacency. It is time to start thinking about avalanches. Is your avalanche rescue gear ready, and is your brain ready? Some early season reminders from Montana, and in Colorado: Jones Pass, Mt Baldy. If you're out there exploring the early season snowpack, please let us know what you are seeing.

Weather Discussion

The recent storm is moving east and is followed by much colder air. Winds have drifted significant snow into avalanche starting zones. With the cold temperatures expected, instabilities will linger for some time. There are only some weak weather disturbances expected for the early part of the coming week, with little new snow expected until later this coming week. Cold temperatures will slowly ease, but at this time of year, cold equals sugar snow development. Stay tuned to CAIC Weather Forecasts that are updated twice daily. Computer Model Forecasts are updated continuously. If you are going into the Colorado high country use our Weather Stations by Zone page to check current conditions.

Snowpack & Avalanche Discussion

Avalanche season is upon us. If you haven't been thinking about avalanches and terrain consequences you should now. The first major winter storm of the season arrived Friday and Saturday. Dense snowfall and strong winds "shellacked" the high country of the San Juan Mountains, Elk Range, Grand Mesa and the Rabbit Ears Pass area. Human triggered avalanches were reported in the Red Mountain Pass area outside Silverton, from the Elk Range outside Crested Butte, and the west side of the Vail/Summit County zone. Most of these slides were not large, but some were big enough to produce serious injury if not worse. The recent storm was a good snow producer for many areas. The old snow underneath the new storm snow has had plenty of chances to weaken. Even though valley floor temperatures have seemed warm, nights are long, temperatures have dropped well below freezing, and the old snow has become quite weak. In some cases a melt freeze crust has formed at the old snow surface. These are all bad things, and could haunt us well into the coming winter. It is not unusual for avalanche incidents and fatalities to make headlines in our state long before most of us are thinking about the consequences of an early season encounter. Avalanche accidents have occurred in Colorado every month of the year. Avalanches in the early season are less frequent than in mid-winter, but they are possible once snow begins to accumulate. This means that you need to start thinking avalanche again as fall snows begin to accumulate. As the first significant winter storm rolls past Colorado, make sure your gear and your brain are ready. Replace the batteries in your beacon. The CAIC has begun to monitor the 2012-2013 snowpack. It should come as no surprise that once snow begins to accumulate, avalanches, both natural and triggered, can be expected. It is common for us to see reports of people caught in November avalanches every year. An early season encounter with an avalanche will often come with a ride through rocks, downed timber, stumps and other obstacles which can quickly bring an end to your riding season. Always think of what consequences are possible if you were to get caught and take a ride in an avalanche. Until daily public forecasts begin, here are a few things to think about as the winter snowpack develops. °  Fall and a taste of winter have visited Colorado’s high country. Snow began to stick on the higher terrain by mid-September. Every season people have encounters with wintertime slab avalanches as early as August or September.  Anyone traveling in the mountains, including hikers, hunters, sledders, skiers, riders and ice climbers, needs to be aware of the avalanche threat as soon as snow starts to accumulate on steep slopes.   °  People are often misled when they see grass and brush sticking out of the snow surface. You should start thinking about avalanches any time you have snow resting on a steep slope. Remember, all you need is a slab resting on a weak layer of snow. The ground can easily act as a bed surface, even if it’s only a few inches below the snow surface.   °  Old summer snow fields can act as the perfect bed surface too. Hard frozen old snow with new snow on top are common culprits in early season avalanche incidents.   °  Early in the snow season there is not much snow on the ground. This means that rocks and stumps are near the snow surface. If you get caught in an avalanche you might get tumbled through rocks, stumps, and downed timber. These obstacles can do great bodily harm to backcountry users traveling through them at high speeds. Knee pads, helmets and full body armor may not be a solution to this problem. Even a very small slide can cause great harm if the terrain is unfriendly.Don't let an early-season injury ruin your winter!   °  Wind drifts will create thicker slabs. Strong winds can take a three inch snowstorm and quickly build an 18” wind slab. Areas with shallow snow may be very close to deep drifted areas. It may be quite easy to move from a very safe area to a very dangerous area without traveling very far. Wind drifts will be denser than the new snow and thick hard snow on light fluffy snow is a great setup for avalanching.   °  Once the sun returns after a storm cycle and warm temperatures cause the new snow to melt, look to see where the pockets of snow remain. The snow that lingers in sheltered areas and shady slopes could be the weak layer after the next snowfall. These areas could also become recurring problem areas throughout the winter depending on how the winter snowpack develops.   °  Pockets of instability can develop quickly above early season ice climbs. Climbers should know the terrain above their route as rapid warming or heavy wind loading can quickly work to build slab or loose snow avalanches which can nudge a precariously perched climber into a bad fall.   °  Hunters traveling across the high country need to exercise greater caution on steep terrain (steeper than 30 degrees with accumulated snow) when crossing ridges from one valley to another.

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This is an Excellent Avalanche Test from Montana Avalanche Guys / CT Tutorial

Tree Well Rescue, Inverted Entrapment - Teamwork in British Columbia's S...

Been in those conditions both on the snowboard and the snowmobile...tree wells suck.

A Quick Trip to Winter Park, Colorado

 Driving over Berthoud Pass to drop into Winter Park, Colorado.

I snowshoed into an area north of Fraser and scrambled up onto a rock outcropping and got this view across the valley of Winter Park Resort.

 Bushwacking along a ridge through the woods. The snow was collapsing as I snowshoed, not a good day to be on open exposed slopes.

 Getting ready to drop through the trees.

 Back at the car after a good day in the mountains.

A small avalanche off the side of the road on the drive out of the mountains.

Dangerous Avalanche Conditions Exist in Colorado / Take care Out There

Backcountry Avalanche Forecast for Steamboat & Flat Tops
Issued: 02/17/2012 5:21 AM by Scott Toepfer
Special Advisory Statement in Effect through 02/20/2012 10:00 AM

The Colorado Avalanche Information Center is issuing a Special Avalanche Statement for the mountains of Colorado this morning. This Special Statement will remain in effect through the upcoming weekend.
There have been two avalanche fatalities in Colorado since February 13th. This brings avalanche fatalities to 6 for the season.
Over the last week seven people have been caught in avalanches. Two people have been seriously injured and required hospital care.
Very large avalanches have been reported across the state.
This trend is expected to continue through the holiday weekend.
Do not let the upcoming holiday weekend or the nice weather in any way fool you into thinking the avalanche conditions are anything but very serious across Colorado.
Twitter 6:47 AM by Scott Toepfer: Potentially dangerous avalanche conditions exist across Colorado as we move into the holiday weekend.

A Northern Ontario Avalanche

The video is a bit long, but at about 5:12 they have some footage from the rider that got buried.

It all turned out good, could have been bad.

Crazy!!

Snowmobilers on Buffalo Pass, Colorado

This a link to the storyhttp://www.steamboattoday.com/news/2012/jan/22/search-and-rescue-trying-get-stranded-snowmobilers/

This is the area that I was in with a group a month ago in December. It can get nasty up there when it storms and the wind starts blowing. It appears that 2 men got stranded and then got caught in an avalanche while on foot. 1 died and 1 survived.

My condolences to the families.

Fisher Creek Fatality - 1 Jan 2012

Cooke City and Southern Montana got dumped on last week 3-4 feet of snow, making for some danger in the mountains.

Hayden Creek Avalanche Fatality - 2 Jan 2012

Snowpack near Cooke City - 15 Mar 2011

Avalanche Pit Bridger Mountains.wmv

We dug a pit each day in the mountains and found the same basic snowpack. Fairly stable.

Widespread Weak Layer - 8 February 2011

Mount Blackmore Instability - 6 Feb 2011

Mount Blackmore is located just south of Bozeman, Montana.

Bacon Rind = Good Stability - 2 Jan 2011

This video is a great follow-up to the earlier test on Bacon Rind. Bacon Rind is located just northwest of the town, West Yellowstone, south of Big Sky, Montana.

Doug gives a good explanation of how the snowpack can strengthen itself. It is useful to see the snowpack evaluations being done by a pro.

Buck Ridge 19 Dec 2010

This is from southern Montana. A good photo of a shooting crack in the snowpack.

Saddle Peak Snowpit-30 Nov 2010

Cherry Hill Avalanche

This is an avalanche incident that happened in Utah(CLICK ON) over the week-end.

A couple of notes, the aspect/direction of the slope is very important. When you look at the report, notice that the rider entered the bowl at a low angle east facing slope and traveled around into a northerly facing aspect. The snowpack was wind loaded and weaker on the north facing slope. The slope also became slightly steeper. The slope broke several hundred feet above the rider and engulfed him. He was buried about 2 feet below the surface.

The second note relative to this incident was the fact that these 2 riders failed to equip themselves with their  beacons. That was a fatal mistake.

I try and learn by reading and being aware of these reports.

I send my condolences to the rider that died and his family. Knowing also that this is a tough situation for this riders buddy to live with. Keep your head up out there.