I anticipated this morning in the same way that a 5-year-old hopes to open a shiny new bike on Christmas. The forecast rang true and I woke up to 10 inches of new snow in Jackson Hole. David and I made breakfast and raced to the bus, only to find it packed with what seemed like 500 other sweaty people. It was a long bus ride out to Teton Village. When we got there, we hopped into the tram line. From the looks of it, we hoped to make the 3rd car up. Wouldn't have been too bad, I suppose. As usual, the resort was scheduled to open late. I wasn't surprised, considering the fact that I could here the avalanche bombs all the way from town.
Waiting in a long line for a tram that would never open to the public today.
After waiting for nearly two hours (we had arrived in line at 8:15), announcements circulated that it would be at least another two hours before the tram opened, due to an "incident". The hosts chatted about it a little "hushed" at first, but the news became widespread later this afternoon.
Mark Wolling, ski patrol veteran, had been caught in a slide above some cliffs in Cheyenne Bowl. He was buried 6 ft deep, and found within minutes by his partner with no vital signs. After visiting the clinic, he was resuscitated and a pulse was found. Last I heard, he was being transported to Idaho for more medical care.
This is event is scary in so many ways. 1) It shows how dangerous this mountain can really be...not that we had any question about it after last year's incidents. 2) If a 20 year ski patrol veteran like Wolling can get caught, then us backcountry amateurs should be extra cautious. I heard some people talking about going to the Pass today and I thought that was the most insane idea I've ever heard. Danger was HIGH for today. Not worth it to me.
Needless to say, the upper mountain never opened today. I did have a great time riding what was available though. It was a little slow going in the huge lines, but the gondola definitely had some fresh snow left to ride. We met some kids from UVM while in line and ended up hanging with them all day. I am hoping to wake up and get there early again tomorrow to go get that fresh stuff that was left untouched today. It's going to be a cold clear night, so the avalanche danger should slowly subside.
Thoughts and prayers go out to Mark Wolling and his family this evening.
No comments:
Post a Comment