Tag: avalanche
Wild Weekend in Store for the Wasatch Mtns
Rat-a-tat-tat, hang on to your hat! There’s going to be some very wide spread and dangerous avalanche activity in the Wasatch Mountains today and this weekend. One of my favorite snow stability comments comes from Bob Athey – “When it comes to snow, it all depends.” If there’s no loose snow to transport, then high winds are […]
Ditch the Plastic Shovel
By the numbers, plastic shovels are supposedly as strong (or stronger) than steel and able to withstand incredibly low temperatures. Their big selling points are that they are lighter and cheaper than metal. The weight claims are a bit suspect as plastic shovels tend to be on the small side, which naturally makes them lighter, but […]
Inside Info – Part II
The snowpack is the third major factor and also the trickiest one. Like the weather, its history is more important than its immediate surface conditions. The plot thickens with the snowpack as there are almost always weaknesses in it, but they are difficult to quantify. Snow is the building block of avalanches, but it is […]
Inside Info – Part I
(continued from Monday’s ABC’s of avalanche train of thought) With so many variables hidden under a blanket of white, where do you even begin? Simplify the process by breaking it down into the big three categories; terrain, snowpack and weather. Will it stay, or will it go now? New snow, steep slope and nice weather… […]
Snap, Crackle & Pop – The ABC’s of Avalanches
The physics of an avalanche is as easy to understand as placing one book on top of another, then tipping the lower book up until the top one slides off. Voila – a bookalanche! The grip or amount of friction between the books will determine how easily they slide apart. If they are both dry […]
Photo Gallery – Shishapangma 1999
After discussing avalanche avoidance for the last few days, it seemed like a good time put up some photos from one of my worst avalanche experiences – Shishapangma 1999, where Alex Lowe and David Bridges died in a massive slide while scouting a route near the base of the line we were hoping to ski. […]
Avalanche Avoidance – Salvation Through Education
It would be ideal of avalanche education was like driver’s education, where you studied and learned about the activity before physically doing it. But alas it is not, and some skiers go their entire lives without taking a class. Bad idea! A lack of avalanche education should not be considered a backcountry badge of honor. […]
Avalanche Avoidance – Part III
Snow is stable roughly 95% of the time, but the remaining 5% is often the most desirable time to go skiing, like right after a big phat powder dump on a bluebird day. Avalanche safety takes years of practice and as much as anything else, it is about developing avalanche eyes for what will slide, […]
Avalanche Avoidance – Part II
Avalanche safety is a blend of art and science. The artful part has to do with route finding and safe travel protocol, while the science aspect is concerned with testing the snowpack and tracking the weather. Both elements are important and ski mountaineers mix and match them according to their own personal interests. Professional Avalanche […]
Avalanche Avoidance – Part I
You know what an avalanche is, huh? It’s what’ll kill ya. Gabe – Alta Ski Patrol The avalanche path and the skier can never truly be friends. In the backcountry, the skier wants what the avalanche path has (steep & deep) but the avalanche could care less about the skier and always has the upper […]
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