March 19, 2011 - Alpental Cornice Control Mission

Lowell,

Thank you for the great post!

Cheers,

$

Nice report Lowell, and nice job bidding your way there! the boom is nice, but it is a bummer not getting to watch it run. Looks like you had the best day visibility wise!
Amar, really like your comparisons of the cornice shots!
$$, hopefully have some things in the works to be back out there full time next winter to follow ya through the poop again.....we'll see. Tell the bros howdy. TN

Lowell - thanks for the great report!

I hope to add something soon on the route that Gib and I took, which included a pretty comprehensive tour of daily control work at Alpental. Serves me right for showing up on a day when they had to deal with 10 inches of new. We started with the 50 lb bags they use to rattle the cliffs above the lower half of the ski area, moved on to some much needed ski cutting below Elevator Gate, and finished with a successful cornice mission. A fantastic way to spend a day.

Our cornice was out near Corry's Couloir, a little before Piss Pass above the traverse.  Does anyone have a picture of Corry? Apparently she was pretty good looking, and a pretty quick study when it came to skiing too (lots of good stories all day long).

For now, I just wanted to add this short clip I got of one of your cornices crashing down onto the traverse:

www.vimeo.com/21284552

And I have to add that while we were standing there waiting for the cornice to drop, at least 4 guys ducked the rope behind us. They turned around when they saw the line of about 7 red jackets just around the corner, waiting at the top of the traverse. Good for them, considering what was about to happen.

Hope you enjoy the quick video of your handiwork.

Great report. We were at the base area watching the show before heading out to Pineapple Pass. A couple of the charges knocked the cornices off the bears in the base area.

Something new (at least in my experience at Alpental) regarding cornice control work that they have also tired with some success a couple of times this year...
Rather than placing hand charges on the top of the ridge, they have been setting up a couple (or more) bags of ANFO under the cornice area in question near to where the high-t runs. The resulting concussive shock dropping several of the cornices that had developed on the adjacent ridge. I have video I'll try to post up later (I'll repost and add a link) from a Saturday about three weeks ago

For now, I just wanted to add this short clip I got of one of your cornices crashing down onto the traverse:

www.vimeo.com/21284552

Nice Jim!

I'm curious...In the video I can see a very fragile looking blob a little farther out along the ridge than the blast in the video. Did we get that one too? If so, then that was the one that John dispatched in the still photos above. (The shot in the video may have been one of mine.)