Avalanches In Tuckerman And Huntington Ravines

Yes, it was a cheap trick, but now that I have your attention, please read the following if you had plans for the ravines this weekend.

Today's USFS WMNF Avalanche Advisory:

Avalanche Advisory for Tuckerman and Huntington Ravines
Posted: 9:20 a.m., Friday, February 11, 2005


Tuckerman and Huntington Ravines have EXTREME AVALANCHE DANGER. Widespread natural or human triggered avalanches are CERTAIN!! Extremely unstable slabs are certain on most aspects and slope angles. Large destructive avalanches are possible. TRAVEL IN AVALANCHE TERRAIN SHOULD BE AVOIDED. THIS INCLUDES STAYING WELL AWAY FROM AVALANCHE PATH RUN-OUTS. TRAVEL BEYOND HERMIT LAKE AND THE HARVARD CABIN SHOULD BE AVOIDED.

Today is an absolute no brainer. Travel in avalanche terrain should be avoided! If you are considering this as an option make sure you have all your personal affairs in order and your executor has the proper instructions. We have picked up 60cm (24in) of snow and it's still snowing. Winds shifted around to the NW early this morning and are expected to gust to 145mph (90mph). We will have an unbelievable amount of loading at an unprecedented scale for this season. We are certain that widespread avalanche activity will occur. Just to say it one more time, travel in avalanche terrain and the associated run-out paths should be avoided. Expect near zero visibility above treeline. It is definitely a hot tub day. Anticipate an elevated avalanche danger rating through the weekend.

THE LION HEAD WINTER ROUTE IS OPEN. Mountaineering skills and equipment are required on this route. Crampons and an ice axe are a must for safe travel on Mount Washington. The John Sherburne Ski Trail will likely be slow going until enough brave souls sweat some tracks into it.

As always, this advisory is one more tool to help you make your own decisions in avalanche terrain. It should be used along with your own snow stability assessments, knowledge of safe travel techniques, skill in reading mountain weather's effect on the snowpack, and avalanche rescue.

Thanks

Thanks Sardog1, I always check the USFS site before heading up, but its nice to see it here, especially considering the conditions.

Today is an absolute no brainer. Travel in avalanche terrain should be avoided! If you are considering this as an option make sure you have all your personal affairs in order and your executor has the proper instructions.

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I love this quote. And yet, I have no doubt someone will think skiing the bowl today would be a fun thing to do.

Do they ever catch these avalanches on video? I can't recall ever seeing one from the Whites.

Mark, this isn't a video, but here are some stills (not mine) from last year's late March ripper:

I remember two years ago, in February, I climded Boot Spur Trail in early evening hoping to photograph some aurora from Harvard Rock. I made it to Harvard Rock, dropped my pack, and looked up at a clear sky. At that moment, an avalanche happened toward the south side of the ravine. There was enough moonlight to see it. I'll never forget the sound. Huge boulders slamming into bedrock, making noise that I felt as much as heard, like shock waves. I decided I would never go anywhere near terrain with avalanche potential. Extremely serious stuff. Never forget it. Never underestimate it.

I once stumbled upon an archive of avalanche photos from Tuckerman's. I thought it was somewhere on mtwashington.rog, but I can't find it now. There were some incredible shots of the debris fields that showed the amazing destruction resulting from big avalances.

Does anyone know where I can find this archive?

Try the individual season archives at Photos of Tuckerman and Huntington Ravines. You'll have to hunt around for particular events by date within each seasonal archive.

The archives are part of the excellent Mt. Washington Avalanche Center web site. The site includes lots of safety and education info.

Anyone remember when the dow cache was moved hundreds, maybe thousands of feet from avalanche in huntington a few years back?

That was a eye-opener for me, when you see the results of the sheer power of what it can do. Personally, I don't think I would head into the bowls on days other than low danger. Maybe moderate - maybe.

I wonder if lion head avalanched this weekend. I believe it has been know to go on really high warning days. Which I think sat was.

From the Avalanche Advisory this morning!!

"After 80cm (32in) in four days with NW winds the mountains were pregnant with avalanche potential, and they delivered! The Ravines finally cleared late yesterday morning presenting us with multiple fracture lines and very large piles of debris. By far the biggest runner was the Tuckerman Bowl. This ran to its full potential filling in the entire Ravine floor and a bit into the brook bed close to the Connection Cache. The crown line is still partially visible from one side of the Ravine to the other, but has been filled by new loading in many areas. Some other examples of avalanche activity in Tuckerman were seen in Hillman's Highway, the Duchess, and Left Gully. In Huntington avalanches occurred in South, O'Dells, Pinnacle, Yale, and Damnation. These examples are where we saw clear evidence that avalanches occurred during this last storm cycle. With winds peaking close to 195kph (120mph) on the summit early Saturday morning other debris may have been obliterated"

Yes it was a cheap trick.....