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April 7th, 2010 (updated 4/9)
Snow
Conditions Report
Rocky
Mountain National Park
It's
been a crazy week of weather in the high country of RMNP with high
winds and significant new snow creating a volatile winter environment.
With
a forecast of warm and sunny weather for the weekend, it'll be too easy to forget that these conditions have created CONSIDERABLE Avalanche Danger in the Above Treeline Zones.
This forecast will remain in place for some time on many prime spring slopes
such as the Tyndall Glacier, Lambslide Couloir, Ptarmigan Headwall, and
similar terrain that will be most prime for large, destructive slab
avalanches and on a tour on April 8th, large crowns were observed above a few of these slopes.
CONSIDERABLE DANGER currently exists, primariliy on east aspects and slopes steeper than 35
degrees above treeline. Convex and unsupported
slopes are most suspect.
Don't
let the sunshine, crowds, or powder fever get in the way of making good
terrain decisions and make sure your track setting gives some berth to likely
runout zones. If the mountains are busy with other skiers/climbers, the risk increases
from human-triggered avalanches starting in terrain above your group.
Martha looking fairly dry just before the recent storm.
The
high winds of the last week have scoured many high elevation locations
and energized slabs that will be very easily triggered for some time.
Terrain
traps such as cliffs that you could be launched over in a small slide
or a talus slope that would be the deposition zone are some of the
reasons to be conservative when dealing with slopes
greater than 30 degrees in angle in the alpine zone along the
Continental Divide and in the Longs Peak regions.
Starting the second pitch of the West Gully ice route in the
Glacier Gorge. Photo courtesy of Kevin Landolt.
A
photo lower down this page of the West Gully shows the multiple slab
crown faces remaining fr0m avalanche activity a week ago.
This
slab danger will have been re-created in the recent storm event and
this is a prime location both on the approach and descent to be very careful traveling on unsupported slopes or in the prime avi angles (36-40
degrees).
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Photos
of Arrowhead's Deborah Couloir
and the Martha Couloir (left) are courtesy of Kevin Landolt, taken in
the last week.
Prior
to this last big storm event, the high country of RMNP enjoyed a solid
week of spring-like weather with temperatures at Bear Lk. approaching
50F and this type of melt-freeze cycle is key to the eventual strengthening of the
winter snowpack.
A
week of warm weather in what has been a mostly snowy month in the
mountains has the most impact on south and west facing aspects as you
can see in the photos of the Martha and Deborah Couloirs.
A
melt freeze cycle will grow ice in these alpine gashes and so following
this winter storm, there could be some great alpine ice forming as a
result. South and west faces will form and melt most quickly
and need to be climbed before sunlight reaches these routes, creating
high probability rock and ice fall.
Super
early alpine starts and lighter packs or an overnight stay will likely
be necessary to get up and down these long approach routes before the
hot part of the day.
It's
unlikely that there is much ice forming yet on north or higher
elevation east aspects as there has not yet been enough heat at
the higher elevations to get a melt-freeze cycle going.
Some
of the lower elevation east-facing slopes have iced up and the Olympic
Games area nearby Nymph Lake was looking phat last week.
The
ice on the east face of Longs doesn't appear to have formed yet for the
spring season but this type of weather cycle is the most conducive to
ice formation so we'll keep our fingers crossed that we get a good
spring season in RMNP as the autumn was piss poor.
Click
on outlined photos to enlarge.
A view looking south
from the east ridge of Hallett at the east face of Otis Peak,
Thatchtop, and Longs Peak with the summit covered in clouds.
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(Above)
Eric Borch carving powder on a ClimbingLife Guides Friday Ski
Outing. We are offering a couple more of these in April on
either side of our Alaska Ski Trip that departs on the 17th.
Most
of the slab avalanche potential in RMNP will likely be in the top meter
of the snowpack as that is the depth of the new slabs layed down in
this storm. Looking for signs of avalanche activity along
with ski cuts and hasty pits should be able to confirm or deny the
existence of sensitive slabs in the high country.
(Above)
Mike Davis turning up the speed on a Friday Ski Outing in the
Tyndall Gorge of RMNP.
We've
been lucky with foot or more storms occurring mid-week regularly for
the last month, making these Friday Outings the prime time to be out
getting the freshest tracks. It looks like this Friday will
be another glorious repeat of that pattern.
 Mike Arnold getting
'face shots' in a standing position on his Dynafit bindings in the
Tyndall Gorge on a Steep Skiing Clinic.
Although
we have concluded our skiing clinics and seminars for the season,
private trips can be scheduled anytime as the snow is good through mid-July in many locations.
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(Above) Wind-loading on a slick bed surface in the middle of a 45
degree convexity helped produced this small slab release (20 x20m)
above Bear Lake in RMNP; likely a natural that occurred around Feb.
26th.
This
weekend will be the crux time to stay out of trouble by
avoiding the more avalanche prone areas and sticking to the
mellower terrain. Hopefully with a
longer stretch of warm weather coming up, southern slopes will again
strengthen quickly and make for some prime corn conditions.
The
steeper and more aggressive terrain that I mention above for skiing
will require many weeks of 60-70F weather in the Front Range before
significant strengthening will start to occur and snow
stability increase to an acceptable level. With five out of
the last seven days having wind speeds peaking at 60mph, there is a lot
of new energy in the snowpack that is looking for a humans weight to
release that potential-
don't be the trigger!
(Above) The Lambslide (R) and Flying Dutchman (L) Couloirs at
the end of March just before the storm hit and transformed this area
into prime avalanche terrain. Photo courtesy of Kevin Landolt.
There is little to no ice on the east face of Longs Peak and the
Lambslide is far from being in good climbing or skiing shape, so likely
this is an area that could be avoided for at least a week while this
new snow gains some strength.
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(Above)
Mike Arnold inspecting a 50cm crown on the east-facing slopes adjacent
to the Dead Elk Couloir in the Tyndall Gorge in late March.
April
through May are two of the biggest snow months in the Front Ranges and
we've been enjoying daily forays on ski's in the last few months.
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(Above) The
North Buttress of Hallett catching some rays as the storm breaks to
reveal a thick new covering of snow, up to a meter of fresh in the high
country.
It's hard to believe that in a few short months, this snow and ice
covered rock face will be swarming with rock climbers in t-shirts with
chalk covering their hands. At least for another month, this
face is the playground of alpinists only and the Hallett Chimney is
cited as one of the classic alpine routes of RMNP in an
article on Colorado MoJo here.
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(Above)
The east face of McHenry's Peak, at the head of the
Glacier Gorge, catching the morning rays in late March. The
ice in the Big Mac couloir and adjacent couloirs looks to be in good
shape at the moment. This is mostly unsupported snowslopes so
solid skills are necessary to decide whether travel up here is a good
idea in the coming weeks. Photo courtesy of Kevin Landolt.
As the winds die
down and the sun regains it's strength, we will start to see the
beginning of "The Shedding Season" when the cornices, snow blobs, and
most solar heated slopes begin to throw offer their winter cloak.
The key to long term survival as an alpinist is to be out of
the way when this movement is occurring and so now, more than ever, the
idea of the super early alpine start is paramount to getting up and
down through these locations before everything starts moving.
Always check the
current Avalanche
Danger rating from the CAIC
and especially accident reports as these help identify snowpack issues
and terrain features that are contributing to the rash of accidents
that have been increasing in recent weeks in Colorado and the
U.S. Rockies. We've already surpassed last year's death toll
in the U.S. for avalanches and some of the more active months are still
ahead- try not to become an accident report!
(Above) The other
Hourglass Couloir, this one on the south face of Hague Peak, which at
13,561' is among the highest peaks in RMNP. Although it would
be a relatively long approach for RMNP, these slopes looks prime for a
corn snow descent in the coming months.
This has been a
bad few weeks for avalanche accidents and fatalities in
the Rockies with a recent climber deaths in Colorado and other
avalanche deaths in Wyoming and Alaska these past 30 days bringing the
national
death toll up to 19 individuals. Some of our more
avalanche potential months are ahead as the ideal 'summer snowpack'
will not arrive for a few more months.
 
( Left) Skinning
up the Tyndall Gorge for a ski run below the North Buttress of Hallett
Peak where deep powder almost always lives. (Right)
Kevin Landolt 's foot at the top of the Martha Couloir on the
south face of Mt. Lady Washington at the end of March. New
snow and a melt freeze cycle should bring this route into even better
ice shape in the coming weeks.
Eli
Helmuth is
an UIAGM Licensed Mountain Guide and AMGA Certified Rock, Alpine,
and Ski Mountaineering Guide and the father of Finley Cameron Helmuth,
shown here enjoying some beach time at 8,700' in the Rockies.
Contact
us
at:
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
or call 970.744.4898 to plan a fun-filled and
educational mountain outing with Eli Helmuth, RMNP's most experienced
mountain guide; now in the 22nd year of his professional
career with 19 years experience as an AMGA Certified Rock Guide.
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