WASATCH STOKE, CONDITIONS, OBSERVATIONS and ASSORTED DRIVAL 20-21

[CirqueScaler]

No experience with Utah courses - I took my course in the Sierras. But reading Staying Alive in Avalanche Terrain greatly improved the benefit gained from taking my level 1, even if it meant learning less day(s)-of.

Also, the UAC rescue courses are great, and good to do with ski partners. It's kind of painful to do, but if you can take a powder day off to do rescue practice, it really bolsters your confidence in your touring partners. Well worth it.

[DigSki]

Solitude new weekend hours - 8-4 before daylight savings, 9-5 after. Pretty psyched to slush until 5, but I feel like 8am opening is a mistake, it's not like avy control will happen any faster

[DLD in UT]

Solitude new weekend hours - 8-4 before daylight savings, 9-5 after. Pretty psyched to slush until 5, but I feel like 8am opening is a mistake, it's not like avy control will happen any faster

While avy control won't be earlier, given the time you have to drive up to beat canyon traffic at least you can get out and take lower mountain laps instead of just sitting in the car till 9 or whenever more does open.

[Hammer-Down]

wonder what lifts will be part of the extended hours program

[skifishbum]

they will always close summit and hc early as those sweeps take much longer and should be done before front side closes and those sweeps start

[wasatch_carpetbagger]

sooo....

Next wednesday????

Sure pwl blah blah blah.... still beyond pumped for some turns!

[tgapp]

sooo....

Next wednesday????

Sure pwl blah blah blah.... still beyond pumped for some turns!

I'll get out with you. Not sure how good it's gonna be but we'll see. Most recent NAEFS plume for Alta Collins shows consensus in the model - my guess is we'll get about a foot

Sent from my Pixel 4a (5G) using Tapatalk

[Dantheman]

my guess is we'll get about a foot

i.e., the worst-case scenario.


Another hiking death over the weekend; vibes to sfotex and the SAR team, and the victim's friends and family: https://www.ksl.com/article/50255658...t-lake-county-

The body count since the spring is crazy. I can only imagine how many other non-fatal rescues there have been that didn't make the news.

[muted reborn]

Brutal. I've only gone to the lake and never thought of going to the top of Sundial. Is the hike to the top of Sundial as sketchy as it looks from the lake viewpoint?

[zion zig zag]

Brutal. I've only gone to the lake and never thought of going to the top of Sundial. Is the hike to the top of Sundial as sketchy as it looks from the lake viewpoint?

I've climbed Sundial and if I remember correctly, the walk off has a couple of rappels. So I would think there are no ways to the peak less than 4th class? Going off long term memory though.

[zion zig zag]

As far as SAR callouts this year, I wonder when some of the busier systems (SLC county) will start to have paid staff on duty? They've got to be burning out the volis.

https://www.outsideonline.com/cultur...a-overwhelmed/

[Boissal]

I've climbed Sundial and if I remember correctly, the walk off has a couple of rappels. So I would think there are no ways to the peak less than 4th class? Going off long term memory though.

There are ways on and off the peak that aren't technical but they involve going way up drainage to gain the ridge then backtracking along the ridge. That involves exposed scrambling on loose rock and it's hard to get to an actual summit, there are dozens of bumps on the ridge all about the same elevation. The top of the Sundial face is quite a bit lower and hard to get to with convoluted downclimbing on choss. Getting off that definitely involves some raps or some really sketchy downclimbing on vegetated stuff.

Super sad to hear about another fatality. The SAR crew has had a lot on its plate this year but pulling dead bodies has to be the worst of the worst.

[sfotex]

Sunday/Monday was the 13th body recovery of the year. I hope this isn't the new norm. Tons of people getting whomped by the Wasatch. Lots of easy access to sketchy places I guess. We pulled a guy off of Devil's Castle on Friday that got cliffed out and we were talking on the hike down. We were talking about the South Ridge of Superior and how lackadaisical people have come about it -- you are on exposed alpine semi-chossy rock almost the whole way, it deserves your respect.

We have had less calls to places like Mount Olympus and Grandeur recently, I have to think the non-stop stream of hikers has made it harder to get lost or run out of water, etc.

[Dantheman]

Sunday/Monday was the 13th body recovery of the year.

Wow, I was guessing more like 5-10. You guys need to be paid for this shit.

eta: When you say "of the year" does that include 2021's avalanche fatalities?

[sfotex]

Wow, I was guessing more like 5-10. You guys need to be paid for this shit.

eta: When you say "of the year" does that include 2021's avalanche fatalities?

Yeah, 4 are Wilson Glade.

[Dantheman]

Yeah, 4 are Wilson Glade.

That makes more sense then based on what I remember from the news. But, still, that's a lot of lives lost recreating. How many people have had to be hauled out with serious injuries? Those don't seem to make the news.

[sfotex]

That makes more sense then based on what I remember from the news. But, still, that's a lot of lives lost recreating. How many people have had to be hauled out with serious injuries? Those don't seem to make the news.

I'll plug our Facebook page here: https://www.facebook.com/slcosar/

This May we had a whole run of serious climbing accidents. The guy that fell 70' from the chains in BCC and survived in one piece was the most impressive.

[CirqueScaler]

I've done it up through the drainage to the south ridge and then northbound on the south ridge. That traverse is 4th class with 3rd class scrambling to get there.

However, the route is kind of confusing and I'm pretty sure if you tend too close to the sundial on the way up, you can get cliffed out in some sketchy shale type stuff. Similarly if you try to come down that way. Depending on where the body was found, maybe the person got off route.

Regardless, very very sad. The number of recoveries has been pretty staggering.

We were talking about the South Ridge of Superior and how lackadaisical people have come about it -- you are on exposed alpine semi-chossy rock almost the whole way, it deserves your respect.

I have been having this conversation w/ some of my running and hiking friends. Many of them want to go up the S Ridge weekly, or more frequently. I don't see the point. I find it pretty secure if you have the focus and care, but it is fatal exposure, and I try to avoid superfluous flirtation with death. If it's part of a line or a mission or something else, it can definitely add to the experience. But to do it recreationally, or casually, doesn't seem to make much sense to me.

Anyways, on to winter which is clearly coming soon! Hopefully the fatalities won't continue and we'll get 650" and green roses starting mid-Dec. Will there be a new thread soon?

[Dantheman]

I'll plug our Facebook page here: https://www.facebook.com/slcosar/

58 rescues, damn.

[zion zig zag]

58 rescues, damn.

Probably a tough sell to the public to have paid staff for that many calls unfortunately.

[telefreewasatch]

If'n it snows enough for someone to make some turns, new thread.
I nominate D-Roc...

[sfotex]

Probably a tough sell to the public to have paid staff for that many calls unfortunately.

We have a full time UPD officer that works with SAR that does a lot of the gear maintenance and what not.
They also just approved budget/hours for 2 of the Canyon officers to become SAR members and come to call outs which will be nice. That, and UFA handles a lot of the medical stuff, so it's not too hard on the volunteers. Oh, and WBR in the winter.

When I first got on the team 14 years ago we had like 20 members, and I think I got deployed whenever I showed up. We have 35 team members so we have been able to spread the load out more, and I think we have something like 75 applications in the queue.

DPS got budget for 3 more helicopters. They are going to station one down South and one somewhere central TBD. + a backup bird. I think that will help a lot. But the wind still blows and the snow still falls, so they're great until they can't fly.

[mall walker]

Sad about the Sundial fatality. It’s a beautiful thing to look at from below, but geez from every side I’ve seen it, it looks sketchy and loose. Sorry to see SLCOSAR doing another recovery, that’s a burden I can’t really wrap my head around carrying. This and Drom like a month ago, those are pretty heady places to be. Dunno what if anything is “the answer” but I feel for the people carrying out the ones who didn’t make it.

[Dantheman]

This and Drom like a month ago, those are pretty heady places to be.

Yeah, even with heli assist those are crazy places to retrieve a body from.

Dunno what if anything is “the answer” but I feel for the people carrying out the ones who didn’t make it.

Destroy the trails and access points, criminalize hiking and sentence violators to lengthy prison sentences[/drugwarlogic]

[skifishbum]

i think it was a record year for drownings deaths on our waters
the big red snake matters too
https://www.ksl.com/article/50256408...-jammed-canyon
#cogemall