Red, snoq, still big cornice, 190430
4/30/19
WA Snoqualmie Pass
2097
5
The cornice on top of Red is still intact and very much overhanging. While going up I found myself pointing out: and this is where Morgan died, and this is where Monika died, thinking: am I being too morbid here? And deciding no, it's good to remember the fallen and how they fell.
I never met Monika, I just remember her post in the partners section right around the time she went up Red for the last time looking for a "magic carpet ride" down to Paradise thinking that's so cool to see a woman fearlessly posting on TAY for a ride to Rainier. And I remember Morgan, he was working at Alpental the year he was caught in an avalanche on Red, and the image that sticks with me was a day where he and another employee had to remove a giant icicle that was hanging from the lodge. I'm pretty sure it wasn't in the job description...but they were having a really good time tackling this giant icicle, removing this impending menace with smiles and good humor.
Anyhow, beautiful day on Red. I've been up quite a few times but this is the first time I've booted the whole darn mountain. Same mountain, always a different experience. Which gives you an indication of the conditions: very firm. We didn't even start until 10am and even then the snow was rock hard with lingering frost at pass level. I thought the sun would soften things quicker, but even after spending a good amount of time on the summit, most of the run down (after the first 4-5 turns in dare-I-say powder) remained very firm upon descent at 1:30pm.
Commonwealth still goes car to car.
We also discovered a new trick a la "necessity is the mother of invention... while booting up Red without whippets or axes and with slope angle, firmness, and exposure increasing we were suddenly second guessing our decision...all we had in hand were ski poles capable of minimal penetration that got me thinking if I could just take off these stupid baskets...so we did. Turned the poles into two giant spikes, and spiked and booted ourselves to the top feeling a whole lot safer.
Also of note were several one foot plus fractures (crowns) on the E/NE side of Lundin, prob from the mid April storms and subsequent warming period thereafter
1. Red cornice
2. Looking down Burntboot way, was good coverage all the way to the springs earlier this season
I never met Monika, I just remember her post in the partners section right around the time she went up Red for the last time looking for a "magic carpet ride" down to Paradise thinking that's so cool to see a woman fearlessly posting on TAY for a ride to Rainier. And I remember Morgan, he was working at Alpental the year he was caught in an avalanche on Red, and the image that sticks with me was a day where he and another employee had to remove a giant icicle that was hanging from the lodge. I'm pretty sure it wasn't in the job description...but they were having a really good time tackling this giant icicle, removing this impending menace with smiles and good humor.
Anyhow, beautiful day on Red. I've been up quite a few times but this is the first time I've booted the whole darn mountain. Same mountain, always a different experience. Which gives you an indication of the conditions: very firm. We didn't even start until 10am and even then the snow was rock hard with lingering frost at pass level. I thought the sun would soften things quicker, but even after spending a good amount of time on the summit, most of the run down (after the first 4-5 turns in dare-I-say powder) remained very firm upon descent at 1:30pm.
Commonwealth still goes car to car.
We also discovered a new trick a la "necessity is the mother of invention... while booting up Red without whippets or axes and with slope angle, firmness, and exposure increasing we were suddenly second guessing our decision...all we had in hand were ski poles capable of minimal penetration that got me thinking if I could just take off these stupid baskets...so we did. Turned the poles into two giant spikes, and spiked and booted ourselves to the top feeling a whole lot safer.
Also of note were several one foot plus fractures (crowns) on the E/NE side of Lundin, prob from the mid April storms and subsequent warming period thereafter
1. Red cornice
2. Looking down Burntboot way, was good coverage all the way to the springs earlier this season
Thanks for the conditions report Stefan, and the reminder of our friends who have left us too soon, never to be forgotten.
Morg, balls deep on a big pow day...
Morg, balls deep on a big pow day...
Regarding your first photo of the summit cornice, I've become more wary in recent years about cornices on rocky ridges and I've come to think that I should avoid walking on them at all, even when it feels like you're well back from the danger. So in that first picture, I would suggest staying on the rocks to just a few feet to lookers right of your partner. Because you can't predict where the cornice may break and how much it will take with it.
I came to this conclusion after an experience where I was scrambling along a ridge with a snow/rock interface, and the snow suddenly broke away revealing a probably fatal fall off the ridge. I was right on the edge of the break (and I had been stepping on both rock and snow) and had this sickening feeling of vertigo. Fortunately, when the break occurred, I was on the rock (just barely).
Not criticizing, just sharing a sobering experience.
I came to this conclusion after an experience where I was scrambling along a ridge with a snow/rock interface, and the snow suddenly broke away revealing a probably fatal fall off the ridge. I was right on the edge of the break (and I had been stepping on both rock and snow) and had this sickening feeling of vertigo. Fortunately, when the break occurred, I was on the rock (just barely).
Not criticizing, just sharing a sobering experience.
Thanks for reminding me about the icicle removal.. That year I worked for Alp Patrol just doing hill maintenance and avalanche hazard mitigation. Morgan was one of my closest friends, and I was so psyched when he told me we were going to be working the same hill! I wandered into his office to shoot the shit and to see if he wanted to take a break from ski school duties to throw heavy things at the big ice dagger.. of course he was interested. We had a great time demolishing that thing, and the spectators were definitely digging the show! Great memory. Thanks. Long live the beautiful spirit of Morgan Miller!
Thanks for the update and the memorializing of two great spirits.
Lowell - I had a similar experience on the NW ridge of Arrowhead, and took it as a haunting and sobering but very cheap lesson in cornice avoidance. I was quite surprised at how far onto what seemed like solid ground (with rocks and even bits of trees sticking out here and there) the thing broke, and boy howdy did it go down the lee slope fast and hard. I can still picture all the tree tops down there doing their wild dance. So when I saw that first pic, I had a similar thought even before reading your post...
Lowell - I had a similar experience on the NW ridge of Arrowhead, and took it as a haunting and sobering but very cheap lesson in cornice avoidance. I was quite surprised at how far onto what seemed like solid ground (with rocks and even bits of trees sticking out here and there) the thing broke, and boy howdy did it go down the lee slope fast and hard. I can still picture all the tree tops down there doing their wild dance. So when I saw that first pic, I had a similar thought even before reading your post...
Thanks for the icicle back story Frank really enjoyed that! From where I stood It definitely looked like the best job at Alpental that day.
Really appreciate the picture tele-skier! and caption, funny looks like heaven
and no offense taken at all Lowell, thanks for the safety elaboration--that was the impetus for the this post in the first place. Many good mountaineers have succumbed to the cornice so it's always worth mentioning. And elaborating on. Right before we topped out on Red we had a cornice discussion. And another one on top as well about how cornices often break off in V shapes, much further back than one might anticipate. Given the conditions I felt very safe with the path we took but walking on the rocks would certainly be the ultimate sure thing.
Thanks for your story, glad it was just vertigo!
Right next to where I took that second picture there was a smaller cornice (maybe a little over a thousand pounds) that was all hollowed and undercut by the warmth of the rocks and looked like it could easily be launched with a little ski leverage action, I was tempted... but then even though I could see most of the run out and I don't know more than a handful of people who have ever been down that way, you just never know for sure so best to leave it be.
That one's for you Jim, thanks for the wild dance of the tree tops image
Really appreciate the picture tele-skier! and caption, funny looks like heaven
and no offense taken at all Lowell, thanks for the safety elaboration--that was the impetus for the this post in the first place. Many good mountaineers have succumbed to the cornice so it's always worth mentioning. And elaborating on. Right before we topped out on Red we had a cornice discussion. And another one on top as well about how cornices often break off in V shapes, much further back than one might anticipate. Given the conditions I felt very safe with the path we took but walking on the rocks would certainly be the ultimate sure thing.
Thanks for your story, glad it was just vertigo!
Right next to where I took that second picture there was a smaller cornice (maybe a little over a thousand pounds) that was all hollowed and undercut by the warmth of the rocks and looked like it could easily be launched with a little ski leverage action, I was tempted... but then even though I could see most of the run out and I don't know more than a handful of people who have ever been down that way, you just never know for sure so best to leave it be.
That one's for you Jim, thanks for the wild dance of the tree tops image
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