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

[brutah]

eagle lift is pretty similiar to sunnyside. that's where i'd go

Dude you gotta stop leading this guy astray, everyone knows the trees off sunrise and moonbeam are where it's at on powder days

[jtran10]

Dude you gotta stop leading this guy astray, everyone knows the trees off sunrise and moonbeam are where it's at on powder days

Oh is eagle not the lift at the bottom? Definitely meant moonbeam!

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[#######]

I bet patrol opens Link Chutes at opening bell

[dfinn]

Decided it was finally deep enough to go for a surf.

[altacoup]

^^^

Nice. I’ve been contemplating buying the burton blank and shaping one. Evenings like this one seem like pow surfing until the road clears would be healthier than pent up frustration in traffic. You use snow shoes for the up?


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[dfinn]

Verts work great. I think that’s what most people go with. It’s also great during high avy cycles, makes mellow slopes pretty damn fun!

[whyturn]

Windy and cold. But deep












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[telefreewasatch]

What a day. Snowing, blowing, kinda like winter...
Last few pages make me feel like we're a tribe. Oh, right, we are.
Brutah and Boissal we all benefited from you guys owning some bad days. Thanks.
Zion, I spend a lot of time in the Winds, but unless we drank so much I can't remember, it wasn't me. Prolly Randy Trover, one of my mentors, the Belligerent Midget who also spends a lot of time there.
Oldskibum, tonight's story starts there and I'll save it for another day.

January 9, 1987 was my second birthday. Got dug up blue and not breathing running routes at the Bird. (Oldskibum alluded to) Two days later finds us in the Stansburys me getting back on the horse with friends celebrating my existence. Grew to 12 of us.
What's wrong with that number? Snowpack and hazard worse than currently.
My intent was to ski the open lower angle slopes in the runout of Deseret Peak E face. Ascending via the top of those little N facing slopes on the S side of the runout.
I was in the back of the group with my ex and her friend and arrived at where the summer trail goes up to Box Elder Pass; to the E ridge of Deseret to find that the group had turned up there. This was not the plan, and this was my party after all, eh? The plan had changed, without me, to go to the summit.
To gain that ridge you are on due N facing avalanche slopes. I raced ahead, caught the group, viewed the N facing slopes which had not slid yet and insisted that we were not going there which had been the group's intent. I should add that there were several very experienced tourers in the group. (All of whom are still alive.) We took several laps in the runout of these paths and headed down. 8 to the vehicles, 4 or us around to my original intent. As I was breaking trail in the relative flats at the toe of those little N facing slopes on the south side of the runout of the E face, the snowpack collapsed and anything with enough angle to slide on those little N facing slopes slid with pockets between that didn't have enough angle. The fracture was 1200' or so. We were well out of harm's way, but man were things touchy out there that day, obviously. We snuck in a run on the low angle under the E face of Deseret and went home.
I never toured in a group larger than 4 after that.
And over the years, patted myself on the back that my insistence of not going up to Box Elder Pass that day probably avoided a catastrophic event.
A few years ago, I was talking with one of the experienced friends about that day.
He had not been there to see the remote avalanches we triggered under the E face, but told me that some of the group had determined that I was "freaked out that day" on account of my near death experience and that going to Box Elder Pass would have been just fine and had no consequences. Huh?

My take homes here are that even without digging a pit, when one's alarm bells are going off, listen to them. ESPECIALLY when logic is backing you up.
And do not let your friends make poor decisions.
You are morally obligated to speak up if you feel that safety is at stake.
They can always drop you as a partner in the mountains if they so choose, later.
I've turned around plenty in the mountains on just a feeling.
Summer and winter.
Have quit wondering where these feelings come from and just respect them.
As has been said, these hills aren't going anywhere...

[whyturn]

Sometimes it’s tough for me

“Never leave your buddy”

Then buddy wants to ski an area I feel is very dangerous and I communicate my concerns. We debate, and he wants to go anyways.

I have to leave my buddy. It’s tough and then I stress and worry for him.
Causes me stress
He makes it out and says “ see it was fine, told you so”

We debate again and cycle continues
Only way to break cycle is to say I can’t go with you since you continue to ski areas I’m not feeling safe in

But I can’t risk it and have to make the tough decisions

Too much stress while they are skiing that area I’m worried about and it kind of ruins my day.

Just some thoughts this morning....


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[tBatt]

I'm just playing Quarantine Quarterback out my window but what's all this nonesense I hear about only exposing one person at a time?

[MagnificentUnicorn]

I'm just playing Quarantine Quarterback out my window but what's all this nonesense I hear about only exposing one person at a time?

I observed several parties like this when we were at Alta a couple weeks ago. 19” storm and Saturday morning. Is that normal for the Wasatch?


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[concretejungle]

Skin tracks in the Wasatch always boggle my continental snowpack mind.

[tBatt]

Seems to becoming the norm.

In the second shot there is a really popular chute just to lookers left in the shadow. There were two parties ahead of them. I’ve skinned up that line to get out of the upper parties’ way but not necessarily in these conditions.


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[oldskibum]

Great tale, Jimmy. You may have saved some bacon that day. Reminds me of the Stevens Pass, Tunnel Creek, incident 9 years ago that killed Jim Jacks and 2 others. A few groups [16 total] found themselves in the same area, with different intentions. The more cautious stuck to their safer plan, and a smaller group of pros stayed with their plan to ski Tunnel Creek. Elyse Saugstad deployed her airbag and rode it out, and was on national TV the next morning telling her story. The New York Times produced a 10 minute video, worth watching.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cjzT15-oQq0

[123ski]

People die every year at angels landing. People die every year on Portal. We would never think it appropriate to close those. I see no distinction here.

Do people actually die every year on angles landing and on portal?

The last time I heard of someone dying on portal was in 1998 - I’m guessing there’s been a more recent death than that, but certainly not annually.

Angels landing is a bit worse, I think there were 9-10 deaths in the last 15-20 years, and only 13-15 deaths in the last 40 years. I don’t think there was a single death on it between 2010 - 2017.


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[MagnificentUnicorn]

Great tale, Jimmy. You may have saved some bacon that day. Reminds me of the Stevens Pass, Tunnel Creek, incident 9 years ago that killed Jim Jacks and 2 others. A few groups [16 total] found themselves in the same area, with different intentions. The more cautious stuck to their safer plan, and a smaller group of pros stayed with their plan to ski Tunnel Creek. Elyse Saugstad deployed her airbag and rode it out, and was on national TV the next morning telling her story. The New York Times produced a 10 minute video, worth watching.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cjzT15-oQq0

Actually, the more cautious were skiing Tunnel Creek the accepted safer route. The upper meadow is bonus turns above a horrible terrain trap.

I don’t think, I know it’s my opinion, that the airbag saved Elyse. They suffered horrible trauma and I believe she was just lucky. She took the same ride as the deceased. If I remember correctly, her bag was deployed but was deflated upon rescue.


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[DLD in UT]

https://www.ksl.com/article/50102621...nyon-avalanche
Potentiall 5 buried in Alexander Basin...
Hoping this doesn't end up as terrible as it seems.

[tBatt]

https://www.ksl.com/article/50102621...nyon-avalanche
Potentiall 5 buried in Alexander Basin...
Hoping this doesn't end up as terrible as it seems.

WBR just dispatched/deployed out of Alta with Dog and Recco...

[jtran10]

Wow just saw the takeoff. Damn, sobering

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[muted]

Snowshoers, or skiers?

[HammySlapwagons]

https://www.ksl.com/article/50102621...nyon-avalanche
Potentiall 5 buried in Alexander Basin...
Hoping this doesn't end up as terrible as it seems.

Ya hate to see it. Nothing but best wishes for them.

[mtnbiker/boarder]

Prayers for a good outcome ^^^^^^

[DLD in UT]

UAC had posted a pic in their Insta story of upper/east bowl in Alexander going wall to wall 4 hrs ago. Wonder if this is another or a delayed call out for that.

[Dshack89]

Ugh, so sad to have another potential tragedy unfolding. I really hope the party of 5 is alright and just doesnt have cell signal to communicate.

[snowaddict91]

Ugh, so sad to have another potential tragedy unfolding. I really hope the party of 5 is alright and just doesnt have cell signal to communicate.

Agreed. Its been a brutal few weeks.