The Persistant Weak Layer (PWL)

The last week and a bit has allowed me some time to escape the wilds of BC to journey down south to UT. Meetings with the AMGA (American Mountain Guides Association), a visit with my parents and catching up with good friends before I return to my semi-hermit existence at my backcountry lodge in British Columbia Valhalla Mountain Touring.

The last 10 days skiing around Utah has been eye opening - 3 avalanche fatalities in the super dicey snowpack that has seasoned avalanche veterans running scared, and cocky locals pushing the limits. The situation in Utah is this: some early season snow sat around in the hills for weeks of high pressure. This created an extremely weak and faceted snowpack that was then pummeled by up to 80" of snow just over 10 days ago. Huge natural avalanches were popping out all over. Ski patrollers were getting caught in bounds, a few unfortunate people lost their lives. But all the while people are skiing in some wild places, pushing the boundaries of what is safe, and maybe even getting away with it. What gives? What is going on? Is it safe out there?

I have alot of thoughts on the topic, as I am an opinionated, IFGMA Mountain Guide and former avalanche forecaster. I know that I am very conservative, but I have also skied my share of big lines in big committing places. The difference I guess is that I have time on my side - I spend around 120 days a year ski touring. I get my fix, my itch is scratched. But when I come down to UT and see what people are skiing with the snowpack they have, it gives me the chills. The problem right now is that we have what is called a Persistent Weak Layer. This faceted snow at the base of the snowpack isn't going anywhere, and it isn't going to heal very quickly either. People may think it will, but if there is one thing I have learned from my time in the hills, it's never, EVER trust a PWL. They stick around, (hence the name Persistent) and just when you least expect it, WHAM! You are in a big avalanche.

And right now is the time in UT that kind of scares me the most. Avalanches have stopped being triggered on a daily basis, there is no new significant loads, people are starting to ski in more radical terrain, but the PWL is still there. The shallow trigger points are out there, just waiting for the 3rd, 10th or 75th skier to hit the sweet spot and pull out a large unsurvivable avalanche. Yikes. Bruce Tremper had a quote in his "Staying Alive in Avalanche Terrain" book that has stayed with me for years now. Since I don't have the book in front of me I will paraphrase. Basically he said if are 99.99% certain that a slope is not going to avalanche, and you ski 1000 slopes with that confidence, then you will get caught 1 time. If I ski a big avalanche slope every day I go out skiing (some days I don't ski any, some I ski quite a few), than that means once every 10 years I will get caught. If I have a 40 year ski touring career, I will get caught 4 times. I don't like those odds. And skiing in avalanche terrain right now in UT is like trying to beat the house in Vegas, but the dice are loaded in the house's favor just slightly.

Part of the bigger picture problem in UT is that skiers here don't regularly ski in a PWL snowpack. The central Wasatch is host to a pretty forgiving snowpack, with the avalanche danger usually associated with new snow wind loading. The PWL doesn't live here very often, it usually just stays at home in places like Colorado. Coloradans are well trained in dealing with the PWL, and they skip through powder meadows, ski the trees, and generally just bide their time until late March/April when the spring conditions start to settle things out. So some folks have stopped seeing slides and are starting to go for it. Maybe an old slide path that has already avalanched is safe - but maybe not. Stop and dig on the reloaded bed surface and see if that PWL is still hiding out.

For now, while I am in UT, I am skiing like a Coloradan. Skiing dust on low angle crust on south aspects during or right after a storm. Steep skiing is confined to TIGHT trees, where on north aspects the powder is soft and deep. LAB (low angle bull sh*t) is the story on sheltered and shady terrain, where I am still having fun, traveling through the hills and staying fit.

Stay safe, dig around, learn about the PWL, and respect it before it schools you.

Kathy proves you don't need to be in the gnar all the time to have fun.

LAB skiing in the sun, so lame, why bother?

It might only be 30 degrees, but the sun was warm and the cold smoke kept getting in my face.

And so the road trip begins...

Well fall usually means a few things for me. Work slows down (or stops). Temperatures drop. The truck gets packed. The southwest beckons. All of these things have fallen in to place with a few modifications. This year we have a camper and the dog is our new co-pilot.

This year the journey started with a stop in Smith Rocks to break up our drive to Utah. Now I must say that Smith Rocks climbing is my kryptonite. It totally defeats me, or at least I let it get to me way too much. I am not, and have never been a good crimper and techy face climber; give me a thuggy crag or steep endurance jug haul any day. When I get to Smith, my ego is crushed and I take my climbing down almost a full number grade. But you know what? It is refreshing to have climbing not be about chasing grades, and to be about the line...a lesson we learn a little latter on in this installment. When I at home in Squamish, I guess I get caught up in the numbers, as its your local crag and you have done so many of the lines that you might as well push yourself harder. Then you leave town and try and chase those grades...but put the brakes on, and get back to my traditional climbing routes, where climbing is about the line and the ever so cliched journey. But you know what? It is!

So I had fun trying to onsight classic Smith 5.12 after classic 5.12 and either falling once or dogging the shiznit out of them. For me I guess the line of the 2 days was onsighting the classic Sunshine Dihedral, which they call 11+ with scary gear, but I guess its all relative to me the crusty old trad climber, as it felt way easier and safer than some run out slab like Dreaming.

Beleive it or not after two days we were so cold, and had no skin left on our tips so we started driving for Utah...being chased through eastern Oregon by a blinding blizzard. That is what is supposed to happen on our way home in late November, NOT on the way south in early October! Oh well.

We rocked down to St. George to check out some of the classic limestone of the Wailing Wall and Cathedral Cave. This place has been raved about for a few years, and well its pretty good fun. I think I have been spoiled miserably by going to Kalymnos last spring, and my ideal desert location will always involve splitters and red sandstone, but we had a great time - I mean who wouldn't love this place, great rock, soft grades and plentiful bolts! We did a few of the classics in the cave and tried our best on the wailing wall, but by the next day, the north winds had kicked in and we couldn't even warm up with out freezing our digits off. At least my new super puffy Outdoor Research Virtuoso Down Coat was a welcome and necessary addition to the pack.

After freezing our butts off we ran down to the truck and heading down to St. George where we pumped out a few laps on the un-inspring but extremely fun Chuckwalla and Turtle Walls. 40 feet of super steep jug hauling with your shirt off, who could complain.

But of course the conversation between Jas and I went back to what inspires us to climb, and these sport routes in St. George were just not cutting it. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE sport climbing, all you have to do to believe me is go check out my 8a.nu scorecard! My first love, and true motivator is always the long traditional free routes of the world, like my last post about the Space Buttress. So we decided it was time to check some places out for the next part of our journey - next stop Zion and the seldom visited Kolob Canyon. We had to be in Salt Lake for this weekend's American Alpine Club Cragging Classic so we only had a day to check the place out. Our decision was to check out the sport climbs (I know, more sport climbs!) Namaste and Huecos Rancheros. UNBELIEVABLE. Kolob is amazing and we got to look at the line of 'Wind, Sand and Stars' a IV 5.12 free route that we are going to do next week for sure. But for now here are some shots from Kolob, that just don't do it justice. Go do these routes, if only for the 2 hour round trip walk in the South Fork Canyon in green meadows and tree stands at the base of 1500 foot sandstone walls. That is what inspires me to climb...

Next stop, cragging classic and then Zion!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Homefront Explorations

Well, I finally have some time off. Not much, just 9 days, but man does it feel good not to be guiding for a few days. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE my job, you see what I get up to! But 33 days in a row is alot of work, even if it is my dream job. I think I tallied something close to 200,000' vertical feet in that stint of works-that's a lot of steeps, glades, bowls, pow and chutes so I am definitely not complaining!

I came home to Jasmin (my wife) who I have been missing lots lately...hopefully she will just be my assistant guide next season, so we won't be apart too much. My first day off I spent watching her take second in the Powderkeg Ski Race, way to go! (you can track her adventures at rockclimberjasmin.blogspot.com!) My other week off treat was getting really sick. Funny how I have seen every sickness come in from all corners of the continent with each new week of guests at Valhalla Mountain Touring and my body holds on to its health until it knows it doesn't have to anymore. Work is done? Okay, lets get sick!

So I fought the sickness and went ahead with our planned 3 day yurt trip up to the Blind Hollow Yurt near Logan Canyon, UT. Tommy from backcountry.com organized the trip to get some photos to work with, and just to get far away from his desk for a few days of 'field' work. We scored it just right with 3 days of cold smoke and Tommy got some killer shots, as you will see at the end of the post. If anyone in the Northern Utah area is looking for some great skiing, with no one around close to home, check out the Blind Hollow Yurt, run by Utah State. A quick 2 hour drive from SLC and you are in your own little powder oasis!

Enjoy the shots, courtesy of Tommy Chandler, and go get some adventure close to home!

The Blind Hollow Yurt

Terrain out the backdoor!

Quality snow-quality skiing.

Jasmin tracks down some untracked

More quality terrain and snow

Jenga, the ultimate in Yurt recreation!

A few Pillow on the way home

And remember if you are really trying to kill some time at work, you can keep track of the rest of my adventures at evanstevens.blogspot.com.