March 14th, 2010
It’s the last day of our final AIARE Level 2 Avalanche Course here in Durango and the San Juan Mountains. It’s been a great course so far, with a very strong group of participants including many guides and pro patrolers. And it’s dumping snow again, with another 4 – 8 inches predicted in the high country. A full trip report by the instructors about will follow soon!
ND
Morning guide's meeting.
Snowing hard on Day 4 at the office. Good indication of what it's doing up high.
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March 10th, 2010
One of our last AIARE Level 1 Avalanche Courses of the season had 8 motivated students from as close as Durango and as far away as Los Alamos, NM. As is typical of our Level 1 Avalanche Course, we began with a full day of classroom activities and presentations, during which participants had the opportunity to become familiar with terminology and ask a lot of questions. Sitting in the classroom all day is a lot to ask, but it frees us up for 2 full days in the field on days 2 and 3 of the course.
View from Molas Pass
Day 2 was spent near Molas Pass, where participants became familiar with topics including companion rescue and test pit construction, in addition to exercises related to the AIARE Observation Checklist, which allows participants the chance to start to put things together from the broader perspective of the decision making framework that was introduced on Day 1.
Constructing test pits on representative slopes.
The final day of the course was spent touring up a sub-peak just north of Snowdon Peak. The forecast was calling for snow and it certainly delivered, snowing an inch an hour at times. Participants took turns leading the group up to about 11,700 feet, practicing and learning different types of travel techniques and terrain recognition/management, as well as route finding along the way. The third day of the course offers everyone the chance to apply the knowledge and techniques they have learned during the previous days, with many new learning opportunities and teachable moments to help things sink in.
Descending on perfect snow conditions.
After assessing snow and weather conditions, the group decided upon a safe descent on a NW facing aspect. Perfect snow conditions typified the descent and everyone had the opportunity to ski some fresh powder on the way down, a huge bonus after 3 days of coursework!
ND
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January 14th, 2010
Last weekend’s
Level 1 Avalanche course was a huge success. We had numerous folks from around the four corners come for three days of avalanche education. The weather was beautiful with some cold mornings and clear, blue sky days to make for a educational and enjoyable course.
After the first day of learning in the classroom, we headed out for the next two days of practice in the field. It was great to see people become proficient with their companion rescue skills, intrigued by the layers in the snow pack, and enjoy great touring to highlight the knowledge that we had learned throughout the course. We had some great snow to ski/ride as the icing on the cake. We had planned out some good tours along with alternate plans that resulted in excellent learning by all. Joined the last day by three individuals refreshing their avalanche skills, everyone had a great time and walked away with a greater understanding of making better decisions in the backcountry.
Aaron
Gareth heading for the top of Prospect Bowl
Looking toward the top of Prospect Bowl
Lots of Skiing in great snow
Dave after a good run
Stephanie digging out her companion
Meagan on the flux line
Michael's fine search
Skinning off Red Mountain Pass
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January 5th, 2010
Last week’s
AIARE Level 1 Avalanche course was a huge success. Four motivated individuals came out mid-week to improve their avalanche knowledge and skills. There was a great mix of experience levels in the group including a professional skier, a competitive park rider, a recreational snowboarder, and a mountaineer. During the course, we had an excellent opportunity to address the relevancy of avalanche knowledge to each person’s needs.
We were fortunate to have perfect conditions that made learning during this course optimal. We began with a light snow on Tuesday which continued through the next day, leaving a new layer of San Juan snow to look at. Observing how wind transported the new snow onto lee and crossloaded aspects was very valuable for bringing attention to obvious start zones as well as not so obvious ones. We also enjoyed digging in the snow and observing all the previous snow storms and how those have changed over time. Learning to identify the potential weak layers and to gather more information with different snowpack tests helped the students identify the potential problem layers. As always, the San Juans obliged with an interesting snowpack structure!
This course was a great success with students leaving excited about the new knowledge and skills they learned. No doubt these new skills will help keep them safe out there in the backcountry!
Aaron
Top of the skin track above Prospect Bowl
Nate switching his BCA Tracker beacon to search
Jason probing with his BCA Profile 240 for a victim
Ben in search mode with his BCA Tracker beacon
Ben on the move!
On the skin track through fresh San Juan snow
Checking out the San Juan snowpack
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December 23rd, 2009
December has been a great month for snow, especially in the Southern San Juans between Coal Bank and Red Mountain Passes. More great news for ski conditions in the high country. Check out this storm profile!
A WINTER STORM WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 6 PM MST WEDNESDAY.
* PERIODS OF SNOW… HEAVY AT TIMES… WILL CONTINUE THROUGH WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON.
* STORM TOTAL SNOW ACCUMULATIONS WILL RANGE FROM 10 TO 18 INCHES WITH LOCALLY HIGHER AMOUNTS POSSIBLE. SOUTHWEST FACING SLOPES WILL BE FAVORED.
* SOUTHWEST WINDS WILL INCREASE WITH GUSTS TO 35 MPH CREATING AREAS OF BLOWING SNOW AND REDUCED VISIBILITIES.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS…
A WINTER STORM WARNING MEANS THAT HEAVY SNOWFALL AND AREAS OF BLOWING SNOW WILL RESULT IN DANGEROUS DRIVING CONDITIONS. AVOID DRIVING THROUGH THE WARNED AREA UNLESS ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY.
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December 8th, 2009
We are proud to announce our new partnership with Backcountry Access, makers of the finest selection of avalanche beacons and gear in North America. Backcountry Access is owned and run by dedicated backcountry skiers and snowboarders that live for fresh lines. Their passions are ski touring and innovation. They constantly strive to break new ground with their products and ideas.
All of our courses and trips will be featuring BCA Tracker Beacons, as well as Traverse Shovels and Probes. Come and join us on one of our Avalanche Courses or Backcountry Skiing Trips/Courses and find out why BCA makes some of the best avalanche safety gear in the industry!
ND
BCA Tracker Avalanche Transceiver
Traverse Shovel
Profile 240 Probe
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December 7th, 2009
We all gathered at the office today to discuss training dates and refine skills prior to the start of another busy winter season of guiding in the San Juans. The snow has been falling at a steady rate all day, which bodes well for the snowpack up in the mountains. Our first AIARE Level 1 Avalanche Course begins on December 18th, and there is sure to be some very relevant snowpack characteristics to view given the current state of things in the mountains. More snow is on the way and it looks as though we’ll receive around 3 feet of snow in the high country from this storm. Hopefully this pattern holds for the rest of the winter. If so, the Backcountry Skiing is going to be incredible this season. Bring it on El Nino!
Several of our guides have been out in the backcountry on many of the areas classic ice climbs, including the Direct North Face of peak 12,579 in S. Mineral Creek and HIghway 666 in Silverton’s Eureka Canyon. Ice conditions are shaping up nicely and the season is in “full swing” in the San Juans. It’s a great time to think about signing up for one of our Ice Climbing Courses or Winter Mountaineering Courses to augment your mountaineering skill set. Stay safe out there and think cold smoke!
ND
Descending the upper slopes of the Pumphouse outside of Silverton, CO.
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July 20th, 2009
It was recently reported by NOAA that an El Nino weather pattern is forming in the Pacific Ocean, and is expected to strengthen and continue through the 2009 – 2010 winter season. As stated by NOAA, an El Nino weather pattern “typically brings beneficial winter precipitation to the arid Southwest”. The so-called “negative” impacts of an El Nino include damaging winter storms in California and increased storminess across the southern United States.
Read the entire article here.
The last El Nino winter we experienced was the winter of 2004 – 2005, a winter in which we were at 150% of our normal snowpack depth. If conditions hold, it looks like we could be in for another record setting winter in the San Juans. Time to start thinking about Backcountry Skiing and Avalanche Courses?
ND
Sea surface temperatures on the equator
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