 Poster: A snowHead
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at Aussois en Savoie, in the Vanoise yesterday . 6 skiers avalanched, 3 dead and the other three, including the guide, injured.  (le dauphiné)
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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4 deaths in Oest Tirol yesterday too. RIP.
Also apparently a big skier triggered slide on Albona Nord in the Arlberg, involving a helicopter rescue.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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The Vanoise avalanche was at 0830 in the morning and according to rescuers was a "winter avalanche", not caused by the heat. They were carried down 600m, over rocks and cliffs. Two witnesses, including a pisteur, raised the alarm and did their best to rescue them. But the rescue obviously took some hours - the paper said helicopters arrived at 1300.
The first pair avalanched were a father and son from Chambery; the father died, the son suffered a broken pelvis. A guide and three clients (apparently from Paris) were avalanched further down the slope, the guide had a broken neck (?"une fracture des cervicales"), one of his clients was dead at the scene, one taken unconscious to Grenoble hospital and was "critical" last night. The third suffered a cardiac arrest, was resuscitated and flown to hospital but died later.
The local rescuers said the skiers had not been taking ill-considered risks and avalanches in that particular area were rare.
RIP.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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Pedantica, +1
I was browsing VT websites this morning and it seems that it is High risk at the moment, when I checked wider websites, this seems region wide, I assume that this is due to the warm conditions at the moment?
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Megamum, Warm temps, strong sun, recent snowfall, wind (in places). Warnings here have been for pretty much everything, wet slides, slabs and full depth slides. Conservative terrain choice and route-finding is key, as well as early starts and trying to avoid slopes that have been in the sun for long.
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clarky999, It seems that the sécouristes were surprised that the Vanoise avalanche had happened at 0830. The skiers were up at high altitude - they had apparently done it all according to the book, but nowhere is safe when the risk level is 4/5, I suppose.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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| Megamum wrote: |
Pedantica, +1
I was browsing VT websites this morning and it seems that it is High risk at the moment, when I checked wider websites, this seems region wide, I assume that this is due to the warm conditions at the moment? |
There was one day last year on the Eosb like this. If I remember rightly it was the race day (Thursday) and it might have been 5/5?
Great weather for sitting in the sun and skiing on piste but you really wouldn't want to go anywhere off-piste.
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| pam w wrote: |
| at Aussois en Savoie, in the Vanoise yesterday . 6 skiers avalanched, 3 dead and the other three, including the guide, injured. (le dauphiné) |
I'm amazed about the amount of times the guides get injured or they did in fact have a guide with them - the one thing you think that might protect you is the local knowledge!
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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GordonFreeman, 100s of guides are going into avalanche terrain every day of the ski season so sadly it is just statistics that one or two will be caught out
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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| Quote: |
the local knowledge
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according to the article in le dauphiné, the local opinion was that these skiers were NOT taking silly risks. They were up there very early, and on a sector which is not known to be dangerous. Just one of those very sad things.
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Cripes!
http://www.ledauphine.com/actualite/montagne
Just got back from the Haute Maurienne where we abandoned our hut-to-hut tour because of the avalanche risk. We had over 20cm of new, wet snow on Tuesday with temperatures rising noticably. On Thursday there was a lot of rain down in the valley and the Meteo gave avalanche risk 3 on all aspects (with a tendency to increase). On Friday we went to La Norma (opposite Aussois) and skinned to the top over Gazex-blasted snow instead. Close one!
RIP guys - we certainly feel your loss.
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You know it makes sense.
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The avalanche risk is 4/5 today in Tignes and there are lots of natural slides.
The pisteurs closed off some runs temporarily this afternoon whilst they carried out contolled avalanches. The noise of blasting in the afternoon is unusual.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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Blasting yesterday afternoonaround Champnix too...
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Poster: A snowHead
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Interesting thread in that there's been a lot of warm weather slides over the past couple of days as temps sore, but more worrying are the slides on North facing slopes at high altitude.
In fact I've just come back from seeing a friend of mine (cycled over there) who is a very experienced guide in La Grave, he also runs many courses for guides on avalanches and is quite a renowned expert, but no doubt there are certain snowheads who know more 
His wife is also pretty well versed with regard to avalanches as she does some very intense ski touring up some steep faces.
On Friday I was driving up to Lautaret past an area where we did a big tour a few years back up to Ponte d'Etinard, the final climb was very steep with nigh 40 kick turns needed, and in the past week the whole face has gone, I emailed Per asking why that must have been the case, but he was away.
Anyway this afternoon the subject came up again, and his wife was really concerned as to the reasons why as she only toured up there ten days ago!
Per could not put his finger on the button for any reason why, although he does think that due to the amount of snow that has fallen this season that could well be the reason for these slides occurring on faces that do not normally go.
We're sticking to finding early morning spring snow rather than skin up steep North facing slopes, and I'm not bothered about doing the last pitch to a summit / ridge if it looks a bit suspect.
In a couple of hours time I'm going round to a neighbour who is an old school guide, for drinks, he might be old school and circa 60 odd but he's still alive so must know a thing or two!
We'll be touring again tomorrow morning and I'll try and take some pics of all the slides around the place, though most are now mid to late afternoon wet warm snow slides, in fact a fair amount has fallen off the cornices along the Lautaret road, makes things a little dicey when cycling !
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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| pam w wrote: |
| clarky999, It seems that the sécouristes were surprised that the Vanoise avalanche had happened at 0830. The skiers were up at high altitude - they had apparently done it all according to the book, but nowhere is safe when the risk level is 4/5, I suppose. |
It sucks, but sometimes poo-poo just does happen. At the end of the day, you can never be 100% certain, it's a game of probabilities.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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Very interesting with Jean Claude, he's not working too much at the moment because he doesn't trust the snow pack, you don't get to be a guide at 65 without knowing these things.
Basically his take on things, very warm temps all of a sudden, and ground heating up, no adhesion between the layers, and no adhesion within the snow pack, can't make a snowball, goblet snow, and with the volume of snow, it all rolls down.
His view on things, wait a week for it to really stabilise.
Been quite an interesting day !
This was my little ride over to my mates above La Grave this afternoon
http://app.strava.com/activities/48951338
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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| pam w wrote: |
| clarky999, It seems that the sécouristes were surprised that the Vanoise avalanche had happened at 0830. The skiers were up at high altitude - they had apparently done it all according to the book, but nowhere is safe when the risk level is 4/5, I suppose. |
I've just posted this on the other avalanche thread, but three experienced French off-piste skiers were killed at the top of the Grand Motte in Tignes on Saturday morning at about 8.30 am too. My (French) instructor, who is a very experienced touring guide, was very surprised and shocked.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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Sorry, I meant to say Sunday morning....
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| Violette wrote: |
I've just posted this on the other avalanche thread, but three experienced French off-piste skiers were killed at the top of the Grand Motte in Tignes on Sunday morning at about 8.30 am too. |
No local gossip or mentions in the press about this. Do you have any further details?
To be at the top of the Grand Motte by 08.30 they must have skinned up or stayed in a refuge overnight as the funicular dosen't open untill 09.15 
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stewart woodward, I got it from the head of a Val ski school, I know him well and he and a colleague (who lives in La Daille) were discussing it in tones of horror and awe while I was on the lift with them. TBH I didn't ask chapter and verse, I did ask about it being early but that discussion mostly went along the lines of "how come the avalanche was so early when it must have been cold up there" - and we were discussing a colleague of theirs who was killed recently. So I guess that is only word of mouth but I would say an extremely reliable source. He is the kind of guy who would skin up the Grand Motte so it's possible that he didn't think that was worth comment! He is head of the Tetra ski school which works out of Sweet Ski opposite the Blizzard.
It is also possible that I misremember the time, but I'm pretty sure they said 8.30 (it was all in French on the chairlift so the discussion ended).
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On Thursday I was looking at the French Meto Avalanche bulletin forecasts on the basis of the Isotherm being so high for Friday, and was getting frustrated at my lack of French in being able to translate all the nuances of the avalanche bulletin, now made even more annoying as it's now an image so you can't copy the text and take it into Google translate.
I did some more research and found a way of doing the translation, bit long winded but you save the image then upload it to Google Docs and then in the settings get Google Docs to scan it into text, you then run it through Google Translate, so you might well get a few vague interpretations but it's still quite good, and if done on a regular basis I'm sure you'd get a better upstanding.
I'll post this as well in the Weather section
Anyway this was the Forecast for our region Massif du Thabor
Risk estimation until Friday, April 19, 2013
Snowpack stability
The warm weather season continues tomorrow Humidification gaining altitude and depth. Some voluntary departures of wet snow avalanches are still possible this evening and night will freeze which then disappears as quickly in the morning. The eastern slopes are the first affected, and some voluntary departures are still likely in the middle of this risk then quickly extends the set of directions, north slopes should not be concerned about that below 25001'2800m while this risk is decreasing in the southern slopes or mantle estforiementtassé.
Even many natural side purges have already occurred since last Saturday, a few large avalanches are still likely. Also note the presence of massive cornices on the crests, they can fail under I'action heat and cause spontaneous dépari plates | | fau1 also remain I'approche e collars, crests and peaks in cold slopes audessus of 2600/2800m about the oil coat is sensitive to overload; Ie passing one or more hikers can fl trigger plate.
Thickness of snow off piste Fresh snow 51 1800 m
Basically there was a chance that avalanches could well carry on during the night, then maybe a slight freeze, that would quickly thaw in the morning.
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