Climbing and Outdoor News from Here and Abroad - 1/25/24

Northwest:

--Pique News Magazine is reporting on a fatality at Whistler. It is not clear how the individual died. To read the piece, click here.

Early morning on Mt. Rainier

--Cascadia Daily News is reporting that, "Many visitors to Mount Rainier National Park will need reservations this summer to enter some of the park’s most popular areas. From May 24 through Labor Day, most visitors entering the Nisqually and Stevens Canyon entrances between 7 a.m. and 3 p.m. will need to make an online or phone reservation ahead of time. Reservations will also be required at the White River entrance to the Sunrise corridor via state Route 410 from July 3 through Labor Day." To read more, click here.

--There's a new WI 6+ in Squamish. Read about it, here.

Desert Southwest:

--Fox 10 and others are reporting that, "Officials with the Coconino County Sheriff's Office say an investigation is underway following a deadly incident at Arizona Snowbowl. According to a statement, CCSO responded to the ski resort at around 10:56 a.m. on Jan. 22, following a report of a tree strike incident that left a person seriously injured. By the time deputies arrived at the scene, the skier was already declared dead." To read more, click here.

Colorado and Utah:

--The Durango Herald News is reporting that, "A 67-year-old doctor and longtime resident of Ophir died Monday in an avalanche near his hometown, which is nestled in the San Juan Mountains south of Telluride. The San Miguel County Sheriff’s Office identified the person as Peter Harrelson, who for years worked as a family physician, according to multiple websites." To read more, click here.

--Gripped is reporting on the winners of this year's Ouray Ice Festival: "The 29th annual Ouray Ice Festival just took place in Colorado’s small mountain town of Ouray with a record number of donations. The event ran for four days and included clinics, presentations and one of the biggest ice climbing competitions in the world." To read more, click here. And here's a photo compilation of the event!

Notes from All Over:

--Out There Colorado is reporting on an accident at Jackson Hole. "Wyoming's Bridger-Teton Avalanche Center took to social media to recount a scary incident that took place at Jackson Hole Mountain Resort on January 20 and it's one that slopegoers around the world, including those in Colorado, can learn from. The post covered a recent incident in which a skier ducked a rope at Jackson Hole, entering closed terrain. This closed terrain was particularly dangerous, located at about 7,500 feet of elevation and featuring a lot of fresh powder stacked on a layer of weak and rotten snow measured at only about a foot deep two weeks prior. As those with experience in reading snow will know, this type of layering can be a recipe for disaster, as the lower, weaker layer can be prone to breaking at the weight of the fresh snow, resulting in an avalanche." To read more, click here.

--USA Today is reporting that, "First responders in Vermont rescued 23 skiers and snowboarders from the backcountry after they were reported missing amid a blast of arctic air that dropped temperatures into the single digits, authorities said." To read more, click here.

--Vail resorts is reporting that, "to-date skier visits were down 16.2% compared to the prior year season-to-date period." To read more, click here.

Upcoming American Alpine Institute Programs:

Denali
Climbing in Red Rock Canyon
Mountaineering in Ecuador
Winter Mountaineering and Ice Climbing in the Sierra
Winter Mountaineering and Ice Climbing in Ouray
Avalanche Programs in Washington

Climbing and Outdoor News from Here and Abroad - 1/18/24

Northwest:

--A number of ice climbs have formed in Squamish over the last week.

--Gripped is reporting that, "before the current cold snap hit the Canadian Rockies with -40C temps that snapped huge pillars off ice climbs at Johnston Canyon, a new steep mixed route was climbed in Field. Found left of the famous ice climb Super Bock, Greg Barrett and Raphael Slawinski made the first ascent of Rasputin Roof." To read more, click here.

Mt. Shuksan in the North Cascades

Sierra:

--Last Wednesday there was a tragic inbounds avalanche incident that resulted in a fatality at Palisades Tahoe. It's being reported that there was a second inbounds avalanche on Thursday. To read more, click here.

--From the Los Angeles Times: "Dangling from a thin rope thousands of feet above Yosemite Valley last October, Zuko Carrasco could feel his arms tremble. A paraplegic who had lost the use of his legs eight years earlier in a bizarre accident — a trust fall gone awry — he had spent a week ascending El Capitan, the world’s most famous big wall rock climb, one tiny pull-up at a time." To read more, click here.

--Bears keep showing up at ski resorts in the Sierra.

--And it was really cold in Yosemite last week.

Colorado and Utah:

--On January 15th, SnowBrains reported that, "US-40 Berthoud Pass in Colorado remains closed today after an avalanche buried 10 cars around 11:20 am on January 14, 2024. The closure is in both directions between Robins Roost and Henderson Mine Road, just south of Winter Park. No injuries were reported, and all vehicles and passengers caught in the avalanche were safely rescued." To read more, click here.

--Traveling with ski and snowboard gear is tough. It sounds like Vail Resorts has a plan to decrease the cost of rentals for those who join the Epic Gear program. Read more.

--Aspen Daily News is reporting that, "Aspen Skiing Co. is trying to enlist its instructors to help ferret out 'underground teachers' who are leading their clients across the slopes of the four local ski areas. SkiCo Vice President of Mountain Sales and School Jonathan Ballou sent an email to instructors on Tuesday urging them to be vigilant about looking for rogue teachers and report them to a ski school 'research team.'" To read more, click here.

Notes from All Over:

--Cowboy State Daily is reporting that, "A 41-year-old Alpine man was killed Sunday morning after he was buried in a massive avalanche in Prater Canyon in the Salt River Range, midway between Alpine and Afton, Wyoming. The victim in Sunday morning’s avalanche in Prater Canyon has been identified by the Lincoln County Coroner’s Office as David Rice of Alpine. Rice moved to Alpine recently after spending years in Jackson. He opened a music store there, which he sold recently before relocating." To read more, click here.

--REI is adding ten new stores in the US in 2024. To learn where, click here.

Upcoming American Alpine Institute Programs:

Denali
Climbing in Red Rock Canyon
Mountaineering in Ecuador
Winter Mountaineering and Ice Climbing in the Sierra
Winter Mountaineering and Ice Climbing in Ouray
Avalanche Programs in Washington

Climbing and Outdoor News from Here and Abroad - 1/11/24

Northwest:

--When the snow finally flew, people at Whistler were upset. Not at the snow, but at the lift lines. Read more, here.

Wolverines in Canada's Rogers Pass

--Cascadia Daily News is reporting that, "Wolverines — highly vulnerable to climate change — are among several species that are up for reclassification as endangered, threatened or sensitive in Washington state. The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) is actively seeking information from the public to inform species status reports for wolverine and island marble butterfly, as well as two types of bird: Mount Rainier white-tailed ptarmigan and burrowing owl." To read more, click here.

Sierra:

--There was an inbounds avalanche yesterday at Palisades Tahoe. This resulted in a fatality. Info will trickle out as an investigation takes place. To learn more, click here.

Colorado and Utah:

--The Denver Gazette is reporting on a friend to the Institute, Caroline Gleich. "Professional ski mountaineer and climate activist Caroline Gleich announced Monday on her Instagram account she is running for the United States Senate. The seat is currently being held by Sen. Mitt Romney, the former presidential candidate, who is vacating the seat and not looking for reelection in 2024. Gleich is looking to take the seat Romney has held since 2019." This will be a tough seat to win for a Democrat. To read more, click here.

--Summit Daily is reporting that, "The Summit County Sheriff’s Office says it has identified the snow biker involved in a hit-and-run collision on Jan. 2 that injured two visitors at Keystone Resort." To read more, click here.

--If you want to hike up Angels Landing in Zion, you need a permit obtained through a lottery. But you can walk down after climbing without one.

--Unofficial Networks reposted a tough video to watch of a person hitting a tree in A-Basin. He appears fine in the end, but it's a good reminder to wear a helmet.

--From Colorado comes the news that there is a new nonprofit, Climb Avy Aware (CAA), dedicated to avalanche safety for ice climbers. CAA’s mission is to encourage ice climbers to get educated about avalanche danger in the backcountry, and know the terrain they are climbing in. As part of that, CAA is working to rate the state's most popular climbs under the new 5-point Avalanche Terrain Exposure Scale (ATES) for Waterfall Ice Climbing. The ATES is a classification system for assessing and communicating the degree of avalanche exposure in a given area. ATES ratings allow climbers to make informed route choices and avoid avalanche danger on days when the avalanche forecast warrants extra caution. CAA is also recommending that climbers consider carrying companion rescue gear in avy terrain—and know how to use it.” You can check CAA out at www.climbavyaware.org.

For more information, please contact:

Dara Miles

Founder, Climb Avy Aware

A Colorado 501(c)(3) Nonprofit

713-410-5289

Notes from All Over:

--This video breaks down what they believe to be the ten most challenging ski resorts in North America. Check it out.

--Climbing is reporting on some controversy around USA Climbing's transgender athlete rules and regulations: "On Tuesday, September 26, 2023, USA Climbing released its Transgender Athlete Participation policy. The policy centers around testosterone restrictions for transgender females, wherein eligibility is contingent upon the athlete maintaining lower testosterone levels for at least 12 months preceding competition." Criticism is likely to result in some changes to this. Read more.

--Speaking of competition climbing, several climbers are speaking out about eating disorders. They'd like the organization that oversees Olympic climbing to do something about it. To read more, click here.

--It shouldn't be that much of a surprise, but cannabis does increase the enjoyment you may feel in a workout, but doesn't increase your performance. For more, click here.

Upcoming American Alpine Institute Programs:

Denali
Climbing in Red Rock Canyon
Mountaineering in Ecuador
Winter Mountaineering and Ice Climbing in the Sierra
Winter Mountaineering and Ice Climbing in Ouray
Avalanche Programs in Washington

Climbing and Outdoor News from Here and Abroad - 1/4/2024

Northwest:

--As the photo below shows, it's been a dire time in the PNW for snow. There is a fair bit of snow above 6000-feet, but most of our resorts are below that. Thankfully, there is snow in the forecast for the next several days.

Mt. Baker Ski Area on December 30th.

Desert Southwest:

--There was a very close call at FunShip Crag in Sedona last week. It appears that the anchor bolts on a line blew under bodyweight when an individual was about to be lowered. The top clip held, keeping the person from being seriously injured. For more info, click here.

Colorado and Utah:

--Outside is reporting on some serious changes that may be taking place at Powder Mountain: "The beloved community-minded ski area with over 8,000 acres of terrain announced that it will be moving to a hybrid business model of both public and private slopes for the 2024-2025 season. New Powder Mountain owner and Netflix co-founder Reed Hastings, who bought a majority share of the ski area earlier this year, shared a December 10 blog post outlining the new plan and why the 50-year-old ski area would be going down this path." To read more, click here.

Notes from All Over:
--We don't tend to follow much news on this blog outside North America, but we thought this was interesting. From SnowBrains: "Following the tragic avalanche in the Mont Blanc massif, France, that claimed the lives of a British mother and son on Thursday, December 28th, 2023, authorities have launched a manslaughter investigation. The police are actively searching for two backcountry skiers believed to have possibly triggered the fatal avalanche." To read more, click here.

--Looks like Moab is getting a climbing gym.

Notes from All Over:

--From the Bozeman Daily Chronicle: "Gallatin County Sheriff Search & Rescue made its first rescue of a backcountry skier this winter season this past Friday, when volunteers aided a skier out of Beehive Basin. The skier had hit a rock and injured her ankle, which left her unable to ski out of the popular backcountry skiing area northwest of Big Sky Resort, according to a press release." To read more, click here.

--A skier fell out of a chairlift in New Hampshire at the Gunstock Resort.

Upcoming American Alpine Institute Programs:

Denali

Climbing in Red Rock Canyon

Mountaineering in Ecuador 

Winter Mountaineering and Ice Climbing in the Sierra

Winter Mountaineering and Ice Climbing in Ouray

Avalanche Programs in Washington