Casualty WA - 3 dead in avalanche on Colchuk Peak, near Leavenworth/Chelan; Feb 2023

[One Fat Marmot]

Oh, @Hates Ramen , on that report, the group had already lost 4 members the day before, after they got sick going up Dragontail:

A group of 11 climbers from various locations, many unfamiliar with the local mountains and snowpack, met in Leavenworth, WA to attempt winter alpine climbing objectives in the Colchuck Lake basin. The team completed the roughly 8 mile snow approach on Friday, February 17th, and established a camp on the north end of the lake. On Saturday, February 18th, part of the team attempted to climb nearby Dragontail Peak, but turned around due to members of the group not feeling well. Four of the 11 teammates returned to Leavenworth that evening.

That's 5 out of 11 who were definitely ill, and maybe some of the others, too, on Dragontail. This may have played into why it was taking so long to go up Colchuck?

 

[Cliffed Out]

It would eat me up for the rest of my life if I’d taken a group on this trip and survived.

Me, too. I'd be beating myself up.

 

[Springer]

That's 5 out of 11 who were definitely ill, and maybe some of the others, too, on Dragontail. This may have played into why it was taking so long to go up Colchuck?

If that many felt ill enough to return to town, it was probably a leader's call to call off the whole trip.

 

[Bounce Box]

If that many felt ill enough to return to town, it was probably a leader's call to call off the whole trip.

I wonder if Cho had group leadership experience just as far as managing a backcountry trip?

 

[Nitty Gritty]

Me, too. I'd be beating myself up.

SAR says it was not Cho's fault, but could have been mitigated. That's different from the Avalanche Center report, which is more certain the group was not adequately outfitted or informed. Interesting.

“It sounds like the lead climber actually [caused the avalanche] by planting his ice ax [and he] triggered a slab that they were on to slide," Reinfeld said. "The ice ax created a crack that allowed the slab to slide."

Reinfeld said that the incident was an accident and that the lead climber was not to be blamed.

“That is something that happens," he said. "You can mitigate those risks by knowing avalanche conditions and being aware of what could trigger it and how hazardous conditions are."

Body of one climber killed in central Washington avalanche recovered

Seong Cho was with backcountry travelers on Colchuck Peak when the ground shifted. Two other climbers, Jeannie Lee and Yun Park, are presumed dead and have not been found.

www.nbcnews.com

 

[Breaking Trail]

If that many felt ill enough to return to town, it was probably a leader's call to call off the whole trip.

I wonder if Cho had group leadership experience just as far as managing a backcountry trip?

Well, I don't think anyone's laying the blame as far as actually triggering the avalanche, but maybe he didn't have general experience leading a group into the backcountry? No info on that.

 

[Bucket Hat]

The avalanche center report references experience at Denali, Whitney, and Rainier. Possibly, the experience belonged to Cho and several of the team members who got ill and headed back to Leavenworth?

 

[Chill]

The avalanche center report references experience at Denali, Whitney, and Rainier. Possibly, the experience belonged to Cho and several of the team members who got ill and headed back to Leavenworth?

That would square the NWAC report that of the six on the mountain, all were novice or intermediate except Cho.

 

[Tower]

Yeah, middle of the night, but after midnight, AFAIK. Maybe summiting at dawn. You want to be off the slope before it can be warmed. Getting the start, pacing, and turnaround times wrong was a factor in the Mount Hood disaster.

Yes, this is what I do with the more-experienced folks who have taught me well!

 

[Tower]

@Tower . What can you make of ascending that couloir without a rope? How about descending? I’m having trouble visualizing what their plan was.

I would have to look back at the exact incline and conditions. Roping up is important in areas with crevasses. But on a couloir like this, you’re basically in an avalanche chute. Ropes cause more problems than they solve. Each person should be well-trained to self-arrest. No guide should drag untrained people up with a rope, creating a false sense of security.

I have seen a person lose footing and drag their whole rope team down with them, also clotheslining 2 other climbers below. I will never wipe that memory from my brain. It was sheer luck no one was killed. You’re just a disaster, sweeping people off the mountain at that point. Inexperienced people rope up too often on steep slopes, thinking a rope will save them from poor choices and poor preparation, when it causes more problems than it solves.

But roped or not, no one should be ascending (or really, in my opinion, descending) at 1:15 p.m. I left at 2:00 a.m. on an ascent yesterday in the Sierra (CA) and we were back at the car at 11:00 a.m. No one summitted in our group (total of 10) nor did any who we encountered at various points. It was very steep, the snow was hard, it was just brutal and slow, very difficult climbing. We were a bit concerned about avalanches, but carefully monitored conditions. The snow has been crazy this year. But we turned around when we could see we weren’t making enough progress.

We did see people going up as we left, but I just think it’s ill-advised. Why make an inherently risky activity any riskier and wait for the sun to warm up those slabs of ice? Be smart.

 

[Naughty Pine]

I would have to look back at the exact incline and conditions. Roping up is important in areas with crevasses. But on a couloir like this, you’re basically in an avalanche chute. Ropes cause more problems than they solve. Each person should be well-trained to self-arrest. No guide should drag untrained people up with a rope, creating a false sense of security.

I have seen a person lose footing and drag their whole rope team down with them, also clotheslining 2 other climbers below. I will never wipe that memory from my brain. It was sheer luck no one was killed. You’re just a disaster, sweeping people off the mountain at that point. Inexperienced people rope up too often on steep slopes, thinking a rope will save them from poor choices and poor preparation, when it causes more problems than it solves.

But roped or not, no one should be ascending (or really, in my opinion, descending) at 1:15 p.m. I left at 2:00 a.m. on an ascent yesterday in the Sierra (CA) and we were back at the car at 11:00 a.m. No one summitted in our group (total of 10) nor did any who we encountered at various points. It was very steep, the snow was hard, it was just brutal and slow, very difficult climbing. We were a bit concerned about avalanches, but carefully monitored conditions. The snow has been crazy this year. But we turned around when we could see we weren’t making enough progress.

We did see people going up as we left, but I just think it’s ill-advised. Why make an inherently risky activity any riskier and wait for the sun to warm up those slabs of ice? Be smart.

Great post. I can see how roping up can be more hazardous than not. Being a below-tree-line type myself, it’s hard to figure this out.

 

[Cabin Fever]

I would have to look back at the exact incline and conditions. Roping up is important in areas with crevasses. But on a couloir like this, you’re basically in an avalanche chute. Ropes cause more problems than they solve. Each person should be well-trained to self-arrest. No guide should drag untrained people up with a rope, creating a false sense of security.

I have seen a person lose footing and drag their whole rope team down with them, also clotheslining 2 other climbers below. I will never wipe that memory from my brain. It was sheer luck no one was killed. You’re just a disaster, sweeping people off the mountain at that point. Inexperienced people rope up too often on steep slopes, thinking a rope will save them from poor choices and poor preparation, when it causes more problems than it solves.

But roped or not, no one should be ascending (or really, in my opinion, descending) at 1:15 p.m. I left at 2:00 a.m. on an ascent yesterday in the Sierra (CA) and we were back at the car at 11:00 a.m. No one summitted in our group (total of 10) nor did any who we encountered at various points. It was very steep, the snow was hard, it was just brutal and slow, very difficult climbing. We were a bit concerned about avalanches, but carefully monitored conditions. The snow has been crazy this year. But we turned around when we could see we weren’t making enough progress.

We did see people going up as we left, but I just think it’s ill-advised. Why make an inherently risky activity any riskier and wait for the sun to warm up those slabs of ice? Be smart.

Thx. Exactly what I was wondering.

 

[Naughty Pine]

A second body has been recovered this week. One still not found.

Body of avalanche victim in Washington state recovered after being spotted by volunteer

Search crews have recovered the body of a climber who was one of three killed in an avalanche on Washington's Colchuck Peak in February. A search-and-rescue volunteer was on a personal trip to the mountain Monday when he saw the remains of 60-year-old Jeannie Lee, of Bayside, New York, the...

news.yahoo.com