Editor’s Note: This article was originally published in the December 1979 issue of the now-defunct, Renton, Washington-based “Off Belay” magazine.

Who says it can’t happen to you? Mount Hood, May, 1977, but it could be May 1979 or 1980 [or 2022!]. Up, up, up we go, the three of us, almost two hours in this couloir and still climbing. We are in the narrowest section. 50 to 75 feet wide, 50°. I am leading, staying to the far right, under the safety of overhanging ledges, several hundred feet above. A thin shower of snow cascades into our couloir from a cliff above and to the left. I thought, “What a picture this would have made if only my camera was handy!” The snow shower lasted no more than several seconds and I thought no more about it.

I started to ascend, but only for a moment, for directly ahead I could see the start of a small avalanche. If it was like the other surface avalanches seen today, we would be in no danger. I turned to Mike Burr and Pete Lambach, telling them what was on the way and to move as far right as they could. When I turned to look upslope, I was stunned to see not a small shifting of snow but a tremendous cloud approaching with a deafening roar.

I turned to warn Mike and Pete, to have them unclip from our climbing rope and dump their packs. But it was too late. Before a sound came from my mouth, I was knocked from my position. I do not know whether it was the air blast or the avalanche itself that bowled me over, but it was an impact not to be forgotten.

I immediately tried to do all the right (??) things. Swimming motions were almost impossible. There was no time to release my pack or ice axe. I do not recall when my ice axe came away from my wrist loop, or when my sunglasses and prescription glasses were torn from my face. I do not recall when my balaclava was removed from my head or my mittens departed from my hands.

I do recall trying swimming motions, which seemed so very futile. I remember my body being pressured frontways, sideways, from the top, from the bottom. Periods, probably minute seconds, of brightness, darkness, then light again alternated. With the last motions I was able to make before coming to a complete stop, I cleared a breathing space in front of my face with one hand. And then . . .

Such an odd feeling, being buried alive, wondering how the others are. Did they survive? How long will it be before all the air is used in this much fought for air space? So many, many thoughts, unlived life, unsaid words.

Then back to reality. What can I do? Trying desperately to remain calm, I find I can do nothing. One leg is bent back, the other up, as though I were kicking a football. My right arm is pinned at my side, the left near my face. I can move my fingers and that is all! Such a way to end. I hope Mike and Pete are not buried and waiting for help from me.

My eyes and nose are free of snow, but my mouth is half full. But it quickly melts and I swallow it. I close my eyes and try to slow down my breathing to conserve air. Time and thoughts seem to go on forever. I wish my heartbeat would slow or unconsciousness come, but neither is to happen.

Then a slight nudge where I am tied into the climbing rope. Imagination? Then another tug. The pressure is being relieved. Suddenly, the air pocket collapses, and I can’t breathe. But only for an instant, then my face is clear and I feel fresh air!

Mike and Pete are uncovering me; my hands and arms are free. I try to use my legs, but to no avail. They must be dug out. Their appearance surprises me. Both have been digging with their bare hands. They are roped. Pete is bleeding profusely at the neck from an ice axe puncture, and Mike has a knee injury. But at least we are alive.

First aid, then the search for lost gear. All is found except for Mike’s sunglasses and mine, and an ice axe. We put Mike in the middle of our rope, the safest place without an axe, and head upwards towards Illumination Rock. I lead, going very slow, gasping for breath with three crushed ribs. Mike hobbles along on his injured knee. Pete trudges behind with a bent and demolished backpack. I am wondering if we will make it . . .

Then Pete says, “If you guys are up to it, we can still make the top from here and be down by morning.”

Bob Degroot was 43 years old when he and his partners were caught in an avalanche climbing Mount Hood in 1977. He currently lives in Spokane Valley, Wash.

Learn more about Mt. Hood’s avalanche history in this 1999 publication by the National Forest Service.

Find more stories about avalanches or climbing in the OTO archives.

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In an effort to increase opportunities for backcountry skiers and riders to undertake state of the art backcountry travel learning opportunities in the American Selkirks, Selkirk Powder Guides (SPG) has joined the national team of the American Institute for Avalanche Research and Education (AIARE) providers for the 20/21 season. Established in 2003, and known primarily for cat skiing, SPG has been working for over four years with a seasoned group of internal guides on the certifications and accreditations necessary to attain the “Provider” status. Class registration is available immediately.

“Selkirk Powder Guides is excited to undertake their first season of avalanche courses as an AIARE provider,” said Ken Barrett, co-founder of Selkirk Powder Guides. “Kevin Stolbrock, our AIARE Programs Manager, and our guide team come with over a century of collective backcountry experience. They have been working extremely hard at achieving their credentials to teach the AIARE curriculum. It’s going to be wonderful to watch them teach what they truly love to do!”

AIARE is a nonprofit educational organization with a mission of “saving lives through avalanche education.” Serving over 100 providers in the US, South America, Europe and Asia, AIARE develops research-based avalanche education curriculum and implements ongoing training and certification for course instructors and providers. AIARE curriculum offers courses to serve all levels, from recreational to professional and from novice to advanced, and they are built in accordance with national and international standards developed by the American Avalanche Association (AAA) and the Canadian Avalanche Association (CAA).

Selkirk Powder Guides, based out of Schweitzer Mountain Resort, has been serving up snowy adventures in the Selkirk Mountains since 2003 by way of cat and heli-skiing adventures, self-propelled and snowmobile-assisted alpine ski tours, and snowmobile adventures as a certified Polaris Adventures Outfitter. Beginning in December 2020, SPG will offer AIARE Rescue and AIARE 1 and 2 courses. The SPG team will be available for custom courses as well. For course dates or more info, visit Selkirkpowder.com.

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Sandpoint, Idaho 

As most people know, avalanche fatalities in the U. S. have increased dramatically over the past 30 years. But what many people may not know is that most all avalanche accidents in this country occur on public land administered by the United States Forest Service (USFS) and that avalanches kill more people in our National Forests than any other natural hazard.  

The explosion in the number of people venturing into the backcountry to enjoy skiing, snowboarding, or motorized over-snow travel (snowmobiles and snowbikes) has put more and more people at risk of encountering avalanches while pursuing their winter recreational activities. This is corroborated by statistics that show the overwhelming majority of avalanche fatalities in recent years have been snowmobilers and backcountry skiers. 

In an attempt to address the growing number of avalanche accidents occurring on public land, the USFS established regional avalanche centers to provide avalanche forecasts for backcountry users, beginning with the Colorado Avalanche Warning Program in the 1970s.

Today, there are 14 avalanche centers in the U.S., most all of them located in western states. Idaho has three, the Sawtooth, Payette, and Idaho Panhandle Avalanche Center, or IPAC, headquartered in Sandpoint. 

History of IPAC

Idaho Panhandle Avalanche Center began in the mid-1980s, when two local USFS hydrologists decided to issue notifications to the public when they felt weather conditions were contributing to a widespread avalanche hazard. These announcements were accompanied by intermittent updates of general avalanche conditions through the use of a telephone hotline. In the mid-90s, another USFS hydrologist, Kevin Davis, joined the team and began submitting field data and observations from his backcountry travels in the mountains in and around the Idaho Panhandle. Davis’ contributions led to the development of regular backcountry avalanche forecasts, issued through a USFS website on a weekly basis.  

During the next decade or so, IPAC’s popularity continued to grow, and it soon became obvious that in order to keep up with the ever-expanding backcountry community, additional funding was needed. Davis, along with Gary Quinn and Scott Rulander founded Friends of the Idaho Panhandle Avalanche Center, a non-profit organization.

This Friends group’s aims to raise money, that, combined with USFS funding, would keep the center up-and-running. More funds would also provide avalanche education opportunities for the increasing number of winter backcountry enthusiasts. With additional resources provided by the Friends group, IPAC was able to improve its website and notification capabilities and expand its forecast area. 

In 2016, Jeff Thompson was hired as Idaho Panhandle Avalanche Center director, and the program continued to evolve. IPAC now issues two forecasts each week for the Selkirk and Cabinet Ranges, and two forecasts for the Silver Valley/St. Regis Basin as well. Along with more frequent and detailed forecasts, IPAC also offers a variety of avalanche courses for backcountry skiers, snowboarders, snowmobilers, and snowbikers, from late fall to early spring.

In 2018, the Kootenai National Forest in northwestern Montana partnered with IPAC to develop a forecast for the mountains of northwestern Montana. 

Current Status of IPAC

Today, IPAC is in trouble. USFS budgets in many areas are diminishing. Avalanche centers are under increasing financial stress, with IPAC suffering more than most.

Compared to the Sawtooth Avalanche Center, where 40% of the annual budget comes from the USFS, and the Payette Avalanche Center that is funded 100% by the USFS, IPAC receives less than one-third of its budget from the Forest Service, with the rest coming from the friends group.

In addition, the job of director for both the Sawtooth and Payette centers is a USFS position. Not so with IPAC, where the director’s salary comes from the Friends of IPAC group. To make matters worse, the $21,500 the Sandpoint Ranger District provided IPAC this year may not be available in 2021.  

If things continue in this direction, it’s likely that next year there will only be three IPAC forecasters — all USFS employees, working under fairly restrictive time constraints. Additionally, there will be one forecaster from the Kootenai Forest. Altogether, these four will be responsible producing backcountry avalanche forecasts covering an area of roughly 2,500 square miles. Those forecasts may also be reduced to one per week. This will be a big step backwards.   

On the national level, the USFS is committed to sustaining regional avalanche centers, but the day-to-day, year-to-year operations of those centers is left up to forest supervisors and district rangers. For some of them, avalanche centers are not a high priority.  

If any of the USFS employees who currently make up the forecast staff should be reassigned elsewhere, the center would be in dire straits and likely have to curtail regular operations. To a rapidly growing backcountry community, this would be a significant loss.

But the avalanches won’t care, not one bit. They will continue to occur wherever and whenever they choose, with no regard whatsoever as to whom they might be affecting.

Without regular IPAC forecasts to help us make sound, informed decisions, and to help us safely maneuver in and around avalanche terrain, the North Idaho backcountry is likely to become a little more dangerous, and that’s something that none of us need.

Liam Fitzgerald is a retiring board member of Friends of Idaho Panhandle Avalanche Center.

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(KELLOGG, ID) – On Tuesday morning at approximately 11:00 a.m. there was an avalanche in the Chair Four basin on a run called 16-to-1.  Medical personnel/ski patrol and volunteers responded immediately and started search and rescue efforts. 

A total of seven people were caught in the avalanche. Four skiers were extricated with minor injuries. Two others were transported to Shoshone Medical Center, where they passed away. Another person, who was reported missing this morning at approximately 7:30 a.m., has yet to be found. Silver Mountain Ski Patrol, Shoshone County Sheriff’s Office, and various other agencies have been searching nonstop throughout the day.

Silver Mountain would like to thank their Ski Patrol staff and the many volunteers for their swift and efficient response. Shoshone County Search and Rescue, Coeur d’Alene FEMA Disaster Team, Shoshone County Sheriff’s Office, and members from all regional resort ski patrols are assisting in the search.

Wardner Peak is near the boundary line of the resort and is an area only accessible by traversing or hiking. It had been closed until Tuesday due to lack of snow. The resort received about 16 inches of snow in the 24 hours before the avalanche. Normal avalanche control work was completed in the morning before operations. The Idaho Panhandle Avalanche Center will be conducting an investigation into the cause of the avalanche. The Wardner Peak area will be closed until further notice.     

The staff at Silver Mountain extends their deepest sympathies to the families of the individuals and everyone affected by this event. //

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Each year, avalanches bury about thirty skiers, snowmobilers and other backcountry enthusiasts in the U.S.; in fact, avalanches kill more people on national forest land than any other natural hazard. And with wilder winters and the increasing popularity in winter backcountry recreation, the potential for tragedy grows every year. That’s why savvy backcountry travelers swear by their local avalanche advisory—after all, it may mean the difference between life and death.

Unlike the sophisticated satellite-aided analysis of traditional weather forecasting, avalanche study requires field observation in some of the most remote, snow-choked terrain in the lower 48 states.

The hallmark techniques for snow stability are pit tests, by which avalanche specialists can assess the potential for initiation—the likelihood of a fracture occurring in a weak layer of snow—and propagation—the likelihood that a sliding upper layer will “run” across a distance. Improta, who co-founded and staffs the WCMAC with avalanche specialist Steve Karkanen, likens it to “finding the sleeping dragon.”

Like a spring-loaded bear trap, avalanches usually require a push to release their potential energy—and that push often comes from the bottom of a sled tread or a ski.

As an avalanche specialist, “you’re out enough that you see people doing interesting things or taking bigger risks than you would,” says Improta. “Their skill level is such that they can negotiate steep slopes, but their avalanche knowledge isn’t.”

Advances in snowsport technology, from fat, stable powder skis to more powerful snowmobiles, have also enabled recreationists to get farther into the backcountry in search of new stashes. The explosive popularity of winter backcountry recreation—with backcountry ski sales seeing annual double-digit gains in recent years—means avalanche specialists are digging more pits in more places.

Says Improta, “More people are in the backcountry now since the gear can get them there. And since more people are there, more people are seeing what can happen—and sometimes that’s what it takes to make you a believer.”

But safe backcountry recreation still requires more than mere faith in a bulletin; it’s a dynamic mix of interpreting one’s surroundings and the conditions, not only of the snow but of one’s group.

“An avalanche advisory is just that—an advisory; it gives a skier or sledder a place to start,” says Improta. “Fortunately, I think a lot of people do understand that you can get good information from the advisories, but in the end you’ve got to make a call.” 

Originally published as “Finding the Sleeping Dragon: Inland NW Avalanche Awareness” in the December 2017 issue. 

Aaron Theisen is the author of the forthcoming “Day Hiking Glacier National Park and Western Montana” (Mountaineers Books). He wrote about Montana fall hikes in the October issue.

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