Thursday, February 27, 2025

Climbing and Outdoor News from Here and Abroad - 2/27/25

Northwest:

--In mid-February, a small team made a direct mixed ascent of a WI5 line called Salt and Pepper. The new line, Spice Rack is M10. Read more.

The west side of Mt. Rainier in January, 2025.

--The Kitsap Sun is reporting that, "About half a dozen employees at each of Washington’s three national parks are believed to have been laid off as part of the Trump administration’s government-wide push to slash staff. Mount Rainier and North Cascades national parks each saw six employees let go last week, while Olympic National Park lost five, said Bill Wade, the executive director of the Association of National Park Rangers." To read more, click here.

Sierra:

--Teton Gravity Research is reporting that, "the widow of a snowboarder who was "buried alive" while riding at Heavenly Mountain Resort has filed a suit against the mountain  and its parent company, Vail Resorts. Wesley Whalen, 46, was riding a black diamond run at the Lake Tahoe resort when he sank into deep snow and was buried alive." To read more, click here.

An upside down flag next to the "Yosemite Firefall." Via KNTV.

--NBC News and others are reporting that, "Nature lovers flock to Yosemite National Park every February to witness the majestic "firefall" event, but this year’s crowds were met a different spectacle: an upside-down American flag hung on a summit to protest the Trump administration’s cuts of national park service employees. The flag was hung on the top of the famed El Capitan summit, a 3,000-foot vertical rock formation in Mariposa County, California, on Saturday evening by a group of upset Yosemite employees." To read more, click here.

--Climbing has posted a full article on how government layoffs are affecting Yosemite. Read it here.

Desert Southwest:

--Axios San Diego is reporting on the loss of six ranger jobs at Joshua Tree National Park and how it may impact visitor experience.

Colorado and Utah:

--SnowBrains is reporting that, "a backcountry snowboarder died Saturday in a large avalanche on Mines Peak, east of Colorado’s Berthoud Pass. The incident occurred in 'The Fingers,' a series of steep, northwest-facing avalanche paths accessible from the summit parking area." To read more, click here.

--11 News is reporting that, "A skier is recovering Tuesday night after being partially buried in an avalanche on a run named the “Mine Dump,” according to the San Miguel County Sheriff’s Office. The Sheriff’s Office said the avalanche occurred on Tuesday afternoon outside of the Town of Ophir, south of Telluride. They said the avalanche carried the skier into trees at the bottom of the slope and partially buried the skier." To read more, click here.

--Here's a report about a rockfall incident in Eldorado Canyon.

Notes from All Over:

--SnowBrains is reporting that, "a 79-year-old male skier was found alive after spending an entire night lost at Blacktail Mountain Ski Area in Montana. The man had taken shelter in a tree well—a hollow space that forms around a tree trunk when snowfall accumulates on its branches, preventing snow buildup beneath. To stay warm, he used pine branches as insulation and started a small fire." To read more, click here.

--The Pacific Crest Trail Association put out a statement on the current state of things: "As we face financial and operational challenges because of uncertainty around federal funding for the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT), I want to be transparent with our community about the impact this may have on our mission. The U.S. Forest Service has let us know that our future federal grant funding may be delayed while it is under review as part of the new administration’s efforts to reduce federal spending and staffing. We are unsure when or if this funding will be cut, reduced or fully restored." To read more, click here.

--SGB Media is reporting that, "REI Co-op has entered into a long-term sale-leaseback agreement with Madison Capital, a New York-based real estate investment firm, for its four, Class A distribution center properties. REI said it will continue to maintain and operate all buildings with no impact to employees. REI Co-op has entered into a long-term sale-leaseback agreement with Madison Capital, a New York-based real estate investment firm, for its four Class A distribution center properties. The retailer reported that it 'will continue to maintain and operate all buildings without impacting employees.'" To read more, click here.

--The Red River Gorge Climbers Coalition has made the largest climbing land acquisition in history. Read about it here.

Posted by Jason Martin at 6:00 AM 0 comments

Monday, February 24, 2025

Heuristic Traps and Risk Management

The mountains don’t care about our egos, our plans, or how overdue we feel for an epiphany. They do what they do—slide, crumble, freeze, thaw—indifferent to our deep need to summit something today. But the mind? The mind cares a lot. It spins and schemes, convincing you that this moment, right now, is your only chance to prove yourself. It leans on shortcuts—scarcity, commitment, social proof, familiarity—whispering that if you don’t go now, you never will, that everyone else is doing it, that you’ve come too far to turn back, that you know this place too well to get hurt. Ian McCammon called these heuristic traps, and that’s exactly what they are: tricks of the mind that make us mistake urgency for wisdom. But the mountains, bless them, are great teachers of surrender. They remind us—sometimes gently, sometimes with the rumble of unsettled snow—that letting go isn’t weakness. The best decisions aren’t made from fear or scarcity, but from presence. So we practice. We catch ourselves clinging. We breathe. We remember that the summit is not the point, that the plan is not the point. Being awake, being alive, being willing to pivot when the moment calls for it—that’s the point. And here are four ways I’ve learned that the hard way.

Scarcity:

I was hellbent on ice climbing tomorrow—the sort of plan that makes you feel competent and rugged, as though you’ve hacked life better than most people who cower under fleece blankets at the first sign of winter. But life, or rather, the weather, often enjoys performing a little vaudeville routine just to remind you that control is an illusion. The freezing levels were skyrocketing from a frosty 2,000 feet to 8,000—a cruel trick, like turning your ice cream into soup mid-bite.


It was that scarcity heuristic in action—the gnawing sense that time and opportunity were slipping away, whispering: If you don’t do it now, you’ll never get another chance. But instead of trusting my brain’s whispery panic, I pivoted. And honestly, pivoting doesn’t come easily for me. I’m the kind of person who gets attached to a plan as though it’s a beloved childhood toy. Ice climbing felt scarce, precious. And yet, ignoring the facts—that the ice would be mush, the risk high—would be like sticking a fork into an electrical outlet just to prove I’m resilient.

So, I exhaled. I set the gear down. I remembered that more cold days are coming, more adventures waiting. Scarcity’s a liar sometimes. And when I really listen, I remember there’s nothing noble about suffering for the sake of a plan. The mountains will wait. The ice will form again. And tomorrow, I don’t have to prove anything to anyone—not even to myself.

Commitment:

When I say I’m going to do something, I do it. It’s not about being stubborn—it’s more that I’ve always felt like there’s some kind of cosmic scoreboard tracking whether I follow through. So one day, quite a few years ago, I set out to ski Mt. Larrabee. It was one of those grueling four-hour approaches where you’re ankle-deep in that special kind of slush that soaks your soul, trudging up boot packs, road walking like some sunburned pilgrim on skis. But I was fueled by that mix of ambition and irrational pride that makes Type 2 fun feel like a spiritual obligation.

By the time we reached the upper bowl, we finally saw the mountain in all its terrible glory. It was warming up—fast. The kind of day where the sun feels less like a cheerful companion and more like a liability. But the snow was holding, at least for now. Stable enough. So we kept going, heads down, ignoring the rising temperature, the clock, the creeping feeling in our guts. And then—there we were—surrounded. Natural slides sloughing off all around us, D1.5, D2—hissing and tumbling like the mountain itself was whispering, you’re not welcome here.

Two of us stopped in our tracks, blinking at the signs like they were neon warnings on a Vegas strip. But one of us—there’s always one—wanted to push on. “We’re so close,” they said. And they weren’t wrong. We were close. But close is one of those words that can either be hopeful or tragic.

That was the commitment heuristic in full bloom—the little voice that says, you’ve come this far, how can you possibly turn back now? It’s a liar in fancy boots. It makes you mistake stubbornness for strength, pride for purpose.

But the thing about mountains is that they don’t care how far you’ve walked or how much you want to tag the summit. They’ll take what they take, and they’ll give you nothing back but humility, if you’re lucky. That day, we turned around. Not because we weren’t committed, but because we realized that commitment means knowing when to let go. And thank God we did—because sometimes the bravest thing you can do is walk away from the thing you thought you needed, with all your pieces still intact.

Social proof:

Denali has a way of making you feel small and uncertain—like a kid lost in a massive department store, overwhelmed by all the towering shelves of snow and rock. It’s not just the cold or the altitude—it’s the sheer scale of the place, the unrelenting vastness that makes you feel like an ant trying to find your way across a dinner plate in a blizzard. And when people are overwhelmed, they look for something—anything—to follow.

On Denali, that often looks like this: one team decides it’s time to push to the next camp, so every other team lines up behind them, single file, like a string of beads. And if there’s a boot pack? Forget it. Everyone will follow that same precise line of steps, no questions asked. I’ve watched whole teams march in unison until a crevasse opens right under the boot pack they were so sure would lead them to glory.

Denali

It’s social proof at work—the mental shortcut that says, If everyone else is doing it, it must be the right thing to do. We crave certainty in chaos, and when you’re standing on an icefield that feels more like the surface of the moon, it’s easy to assume that whoever went first must have known something you didn’t. But the truth is, they might have just been winging it too.

I get it—it’s comforting to be a sheep when you’re tired and scared. But mountains don’t care about the herd. The glacier doesn’t care that you’re following footprints like breadcrumbs in a fairy tale. I’ve learned the hard way that there’s no safety in numbers when the numbers are all guessing. Sometimes, you have to step off the beaten track, listen to your own gut, and risk being the lone idiot standing still while everyone else presses on. Because out there, the price of being wrong isn’t just a bruised ego—it’s everything. And the boot pack? It’s not a shortcut to safety. Sometimes it’s just the first step to a very long fall.

Familiarity:

Mount Baker feels like home. I know the ridges, the glaciers, the hum of the icefalls cracking in the distance. I know the smell of the air when the sun hits the snow and that specific crunch of my boots when the cold is just right. And that’s the thing about familiarity—it’s seductive. It whispers: You’ve been here a thousand times. You know this place. You’re fine.

I tell myself I’ll do a full tour plan, really sit down and dig into the avy report. But more often than I’d like to admit, I glance at the map like I’m skimming the instructions for a piece of IKEA furniture I’ve built five times already. The glaciers feel small, almost benign—like old friends who would never turn on me. But that’s the problem with comfort: it makes you blind. Baker is no small hill. It’s a sprawling, volatile cathedral of ice and rock. And yet, when you’re familiar with something, you start to believe you’re immune to its sharp edges.

Mt. Baker

The familiarity heuristic is one of the hardest dragons I fight—sneaky and quiet, almost invisible. You don’t realize you’re under its spell until you’re standing there in a windstorm thinking, Why didn’t I double-check my route? Why didn’t I respect this place today like I did the first time? Familiarity lulls you into softness when you should be sharp.

I have to remind myself—sometimes out loud—that Baker is a real mountain with real consequences. No matter how many times I’ve been there, it will never love me back. It doesn’t owe me anything. And the comfort I feel up there? That’s my responsibility, not the mountain’s. I can’t afford to be a tourist in my own backyard. That’s how people lose their way, or worse. So, I do the work. Even if it feels like overkill. Even if I want to skip the safety checks because I’ve been through them a hundred times. Because I know the moment you stop being diligent in a place you love is the moment the mountain reminds you how small you really are.

--Mike Morris, Instructor and Guide
Posted by Jason Martin at 6:00 AM 0 comments

Thursday, February 20, 2025

Climbing and Outdoor News from Here and Abroad - 2/20/2025

Northwest:

--CBS News is reporting that, "An avalanche in Oregon's Cascade Mountains killed two backcountry skiers and a third was found dead in an avalanche field near South Lake Tahoe in California, authorities said." To read more, click here.

Sierra:

--Gripped is reporting that, "Yosemite National Park has halted a plan to make its timed-entry reservation system permanent. The new Trump administration’s Interior Secretary, Doug Burgum, has put on hold all federal proposals, which includes the reservation system." To read more, click here.

--Here's a second piece about Yosemite from SF Gate: "Yosemite National Park is in trouble. Hamstrung by President Donald Trump’s hiring freeze, hundreds of rescinded job offers and the threat of coming layoffs, the park is poised to enter its busiest months of the year severely short-staffed. Not only that, but the park’s day-use reservation system — created to protect park resources and improve the visitor experience by reducing crowding — appears unlikely to return this year." To read more, click here.

--And a third Yosemite note, this one from San Francisco Chronicle: "Yosemite National Park announced Friday that reservations for some of the park’s most popular campgrounds will be delayed. The park will delay the sale of reservations between June 15 and July 14 for the Upper Pines, Lower Pines, North Pines, Wawona and Hodgdon Meadow campsites. The reasoning behind the delay is unclear." To read more, click here.

Desert Southwest:

--3 News is reporting that, "The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department's Search and Rescue team is sharing details on some recent rescues out at Red Rock Canyon. The first rescue happened at around 2 p.m. on Friday, February 14, near Gateway Canyon." To read more, click here.

--SF Gate is reporting that, "a handful of privately owned lots within the boundaries of Joshua Tree National Park in the Whispering Pines area were recently purchased, sparking concerns among environmentalists and some residents about what’s coming to the California desert." To read more, click here.

Colorado and Utah:

--The Denver Post is reporting that, "A 24-year-old rock climber fell to his death in Clear Creek Canyon on Saturday, according to the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office. The man was climbing near the popular Red Slab climbing area at approximately 9:39 a.m. when he fell, spokesperson Jacki Kelley said." To read more, click here.

--Steamboat Pilot and Today is reporting that, "A longtime local skier and business owner died Tuesday morning in a skiing accident at Steamboat Resort, according to Routt County Coroner Mitch Locke. Peter Van De Carr, 70, of Steamboat Springs, was pronounced dead at the scene at 10:46 a.m. Tuesday." To read more, click here.

--2 KUTV is reporting that, "A forecaster and meteorologist snowboarding in a winter storm found himself in an unexpected rescue mission after spotting a young skier stuck in deep snow on Saturday. Luke Stone was skiing on Wilma’s Run, coming off the Cirque Traverse trail at Snowbird, his home resort, after 13 inches of snow fell the night before. While near a groomed cat track, he noticed the child struggling but didn’t immediately realize the severity of the situation." To read more, click here.

--Shop Eat Surf Outdoor is reporting that, "Black Diamond and its parent company Clarus Corporation warned investors that they face legal, reputational, and financial risks after receiving subpoenas last month as part of an investigation by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Utah. The investigation is related to the U.S. Consumer Products Safety Commission’s (CPSC) conclusion that it did not respond quickly enough to a problem with avalanche transmitters distributed by Black Diamond, according to documents filed by Clarus with the SEC on Friday. CPSC also said Clarus and Black Diamond misrepresented the issue and recommended that it impose 'substantial civil monetary penalties,' according to background included in its fiscal 2023 report." To read more, click here.

Notes from All Over:

--The Miami Herald is reporting that, "Two ice climbers were caught in an avalanche as they reached the start of their route, New Hampshire officials said. A pair of climbers, a 31-year-old man and 36-year-old woman, made their way to the Black Dike climbing route in Franconia Notch State Park on Sunday, Feb. 16, the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department said in a news release." To read more, click here.

--Apparently some guys skied an erupting volcano in Italy. See below:


--Gripped is reporting that, "Denali National Park, along with other US national parks will have fewer search and rescue workers in 2025. Around 1,000 climbers attempt Denali, North America’s tallest mountain, every year. Denali usually has 12 search and rescue workers, but it looks like it will only have six in 2025. Those search and rescue rangers are also responsible for every other climbing in Denali National Park, which is 2.5 million hectares." To read more, click here.

--Reuters is reporting that, "The U.S. Forest Service is firing around 3,400 recent hires while the National Park Service is terminating about 1,000 under President Donald Trump's push to cut federal spending, people familiar with the plans said on Friday." To read more, click here.

--The National Parks Traveler is reporting that, "the Trump administration has canceled law enforcement training through the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC) for National Park Service rangers hired after January 27, according to a group that closely follows news affecting park rangers. If true, the order seems to reverse earlier statements that law enforcement personnel would not be affected by the hiring freeze." To read more, click here.

--WyoFile is reporting that, "In a tie vote, the Wyoming Senate defeated a resolution demanding Congress turn over all federal land in the state but Yellowstone, even after senators amended the measure to exclude Grand Teton National Park and national forests." To read more, click here.

--It appears that Michael Tracy, a youtuber, is attacking John Krakauer through his platform. Krakauer is responding with a series of videos and articles. You can see them here.

--Gripped is reporting that, "Denali National Park, along with other US national parks will have fewer search and rescue workers in 2025. Around 1,000 climbers attempt Denali, North America’s tallest mountain, every year. Denali usually has 12 search and rescue workers, but it looks like it will only have six in 2025. Those search and rescue rangers are also responsible for every other climbing in Denali National Park, which is 2.5 million hectares." To read more, click here.


--Inertia is reporting that, "skiing and snowboarding are the second most expensive sport(s) for kids to participate in, according to a survey from the Aspen Institute. This, of course, shouldn’t be surprising to anybody who’s seen the rising costs of everything from gear to lift tickets in recent years, making the sport appear less and less accessible to most people." To read more, click here.

Posted by Jason Martin at 6:00 AM 0 comments

Thursday, February 6, 2025

Climbing and Outdoor News from Here and Abroad - 2/6/25

Northwest:

--There was an avalanche burial on "the Elbow" outside the Mt. Baker Ski area on Sunday. The person's partners were able to extract the person quickly from the bottom of the "Queen Anne Hill" and there were no injuries.

--It looks like this accident could have been avoided if the bar had been down. From SnowBrains: "A snowboarder sustained non-life-threatening injuries after falling from the Coach chairlift at Bogus Basin Mountain Recreation Area, Idaho, on Friday evening. The incident occurred between 7:30 and 8:00 p.m. during night skiing hours." To read more, click here.

--A Squamish local snowboarded and rappelled his way down the Stawamus Chiefs North Gully on Monday. Read more!


--Gear Junkie is reporting that, "For decades, many of the thru-hikers who trek the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) have ended their journey just a few miles over the U.S.-Canada border. Yet they’ll now have to be satisfied with ending their hike at the border — or trekking an extra 62 miles to the closest available border crossing. That’s because the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) changed the rules this week. Previously, hikers could apply in advance for a permit to cross the border on the trail. But the CBSA said Monday that it’s now prohibited to cross the border via the PCT." To read more, click here.

--Arc’teryx is shaking up its leadership team. Learn more.

--It's possible a case in Idaho's Supreme Court could have profound impacts on skier and ski area liability. Read about it here.

Colorado and Utah:

--If you duck the rope in Utah, you can be banned from a ski resort for 30-days. Read about it!

Notes from All Over:

--KSBW 8 is reporting on an accident in California: "A 21-year-old rock climber had to be life-flighted out of the Pinnacles National Park Sunday afternoon after he fell 35 feet; roughly the height of a 3-story building." To read more, click here.

--The NewYork Post is reporting that, "Forest rangers with the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation said they faced several challenges working to airlift an ice climber after a dangerous fall in the Catskills left him seriously injured and unable to walk. The climber, a 35-year-old man from New Paltz, New York, was climbing alone and without a rope at Buttermilk Falls on Jan. 24 when he fell." To read more, click here.

--Alaska's News Source is reporting that, "a skier was injured and trapped for five hours Friday in an avalanche near Turnagain Pass, according to the Chugach National Forest Avalanche Information Center. The center said the slide struck at roughly 4,000 feet elevation around 1:30 p.m. after the skier had descended approximately 200 vertical feet down East Groundhog Peak — also known as Captain’s Chair — triggering the avalanche, according to the incident report." To read more, click here.

--Backpacker is reporting that, "a Los Angeles-area search and rescue team is urging the public to respect wildfire closures after a hiker called for help from an off-limits trail over the weekend, but says it’s already training for more missions in burned-over zones. In a Facebook post, Altadena Mountain Rescue (AMR) said that it had received its first hiker rescue call since the Eaton Fire on Saturday. A man had attempted to climb the Lower Sam Merrill Trail to Echo Mountain, previously a popular, roughly 5-mile out-and-back hike, but quickly discovered that fire had destroyed the trail." To read more, click here.

--LiftBlog is reporting on an incident in New Hampshire: "a quad chair detached mid-line on Attitash’s Flying Bear lift this afternoon, injuring one person. A photo posted to the Ski the East Facebook page showed the chair and skier fell around tower 6 and he was conscious before being taken down the mountain in a toboggan. A Carroll County scanner alerts Facebook page reported the 49 year old male was transported by ambulance with a lower back injury. Attitash’s lift status page showed the lift closed for the day." To read more, click here.

This album cover was shot after the musician dropped his rope at New River Gorge.


--The UIAA has published a document that lays out what it considers acceptable norms for hiking and climbing. Check it out, here.


--The LA Times is reporting that, "As the Trump administration rushes to cut spending and eliminate federal jobs, even the people who work at the national parks — among the country’s most beloved and least politicized institutions — find themselves directly in the crosshairs. Last week, the seasonal workers who staff 433 national parks and historical sites, including Yosemite, Death Valley and Joshua Tree, began receiving emails saying their job offers for the 2025 season had been “rescinded,” with little further explanation." To read more, click here.

--Rocky Talkie has opened applications for the Search and Rescue awards.

Posted by Jason Martin at 6:00 AM 0 comments
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