Avalanches Kill 3 at Stevens Pass, 1 at Alpental

I was describing the slide I Saw in Highland bowl that is NE of Southern Cross chair, on the way to Big Chief Mt. from the ski area. Not the slide on the SW side of Cowboy Mt. where the Avi deaths took place. Sorry if I confused you. The Highland bowl slide was skier triggered (second hand knowledge), luckily with out injury. The Highland bowl area had been skied by many skiers on Sunday including my wife and friends. Could have been different outcome with different timing.

@ zenom--- curious where you were at crystal yesterday and the aspects of the slides you kicked off? i'm trying to make sense of these accidents and the conditions we observed in the field. yesterday we were riding the west aspect of east peak.

we chose crystal as they had rec'd the least amount of snow. we saw no propagation w/ only a little bit of soft slab. mostly the snow was falling in on itself.

i guess i'm trying to determine whether the accidents and observed slides were happening on the lee slopes and totally loaded as forecasted. not trying to second guess anyone's decision other than my own. i'm looking for clues to help determine whether we made good decisions and didn't just get lucky. probably both, but knowing more about slides is always good information.

thanks,
mc

I think the news reports are best taken with a grain of salt.  Listening to reporters, I hear and read they are trying to talk about something they don’t know about.  One reporter obviously did not have basic knowledge of skiing. Minor details like the difference of being off a groomed run and being outside the resort.  And reports of the slide running 3000' vs at 3000'.  simple math rules that out.  I saw many shots from helicopters focused on the snow and dug up area where the highway dept snow cat made a ramp up from teh highway.  One reporter even made comment on how the snow had come down over the roadway...   I'd have liked to see an air image of the scene

I believe the 20’ is the depth of the runout/debris pile. 

What a sad story. I hope to increase the skill with which I armchair my own decisions.

Snoholic, my misunderstanding on your description. Yes I had heard about that slide you describe very early in the rumors going around in my group Sunday afternoon. It was confusing not knowing what and where early on in the rumors going around. In fact I had assumed that the skiers caught were at that site since I believe someone said that they had shut down the Southern Cross/Double chair for a while. And yes, it makes perfectly good sense that that slide would have stalled at the trees there, since there seems to be a considerable bench right at treeline. (Probably why there is a treeline there to begin with.)

fwb, I also figured that the news must have been talking about the debris field, but it gets a bit confusing in these later stories since the information is often couched in quotes from individuals who were at the site. That and the press' propensity to exaggerate. It is tough to get a 20ft. fracture with a 12ft snowpack. But, of course the reporters can only write accurately to the extent that they actually understand what they are told.

In the end, with analysis, I believe that there will be something about the south facing exposures on this day that were somewhat unique here. I do not know what the bedding structure of these slabs was, but I will bet that there was something about those south facing slopes that set things up badly.

So sad! My most sincere condolences to all the families and friends involved.

This one strikes close to home. Jim Jack was one of my earliest ski buddies from high school. My first trip to Whistler was with him and a group of other classmates. We had loads of fun and got into a bit of mischief - that was always the way with JJ. Brings back a wave of fond memories. You could not find a more passionate alpine slider than Jim - he revolved his whole life around the sport. He brought joy and enthusiasm to everyone he met and had friends all 'round the world.

Interestingly, my family and I spent the last couple of days flat tracking in Leavenworth, Jim's hometown. I just heard the news actually.

Backcountry skiing gives so much but it takes too - sometimes for keeps. So many friends and friends of friends have paid the ultimate price over the years. Its a small community and it hurts every time.

Be careful out there - but live each day with passion too. It can be a fine line.... think of those who've lost their lives and don't be ashamed to step back and live to ski another day.