Explore Big Sky wrote an article on the new beacon checker at the Beehive Trailhead near Big Sky. It was a collaboration between the Friends of the Avalanche Center, the GNFAC and the Big Sky Community Organization.
Photo: @letemrun23
Photo: @letemrun23
"Today while touring in the Deer Creek drainage in the Northern Madisons my partners and I noticed many red flags. Wind was strong from the WSW. We had lots of collapsing and some cracking while touring up. We bailed on our main objective, and while returning to the car we triggered a wind slab remotely from the bottom flats of a gulley. A rider in our group began to descend when we felt and heard a large whumph, followed by a 3-5 second loud rumbling before a wind slab on the ridge above (100 yards away) released (SS-ARr-R1-D1-S, NE aspect @ 6700'). It was about 50' wide and 1-2' deep, but didn't have enough energy to run far down the slope. Touchy stuff!"
"...today we toured into an east aspect in the N. Madison. Winds were stronger than we anticipated, already western sides of ridges had been scoured to near bare ground. While skinning along the ridge we intentionally triggered large wind drifts and small cornices. We dug a pit on a south/south east aspect and got ectp 25. While skiing a low angle meadow back out to the ridge a member of our party remote triggered a small slide on a wind loaded pocket on an east aspect. According to my partner it was 75 ft wide and maybe a 1-2 feet deep.
"I observed this collapse & propagation as I stepped over some wood in the skinner on the north ridge of Mount Ellis this morning, ~8000’, due East. I was tailing Chabot and his partner, and they had passed this way just minutes before."
"I observed this collapse & propagation as I stepped over some wood in the skinner on the north ridge of Mount Ellis this morning, ~8000’, due East. I was tailing Chabot and his partner, and they had passed this way just minutes before." Photo: D. Rider
