Quick report
Our group of six toured up the looker’s left ridge of Jumbo. The snow was wet and slushy throughout the day. When we reached the top and finally got eyes on the couloir, we noticed a deep trough running down the gut of the line, approximately 5 feet deep at its deepest point.
The first person in our party to drop in was caught in their slough and pulled into the trough. They were carried roughly 1,000 vertical feet to the bottom of the couloir. The slough moved quickly and entrained a significant amount of snow. Fortunately, they were neither injured nor buried. I was positioned on a rock riders left of the couloir and maintained visual contact with the rider for the duration of the slide. After confirming they were okay, the rest of the group descended the couloir without incident by managing slough carefully and avoiding the trough.
In our group’s case, we all felt confident managing the wet loose avalanche problem of the day. However, because of our large group and some late-season complacency, we made the mistake of not fully discussing the line beforehand, identifying the terrain hazards, and establishing clear points of safety.
A good reminder that even very small avalanches can be dangerous in terrain traps. Thankful the mountains taught us a lesson with little repreccusions.
Rider triggered wet loose. Significant ammount of wet and heavy debris dragged the rider into a terrain trap. Rider went for a ~1000ft ride and was not burried or injured.Weather
- Air Temp
- 41
- Cloud Cover
- broken
- Wind Loading
- none
- Recent Snowfall
- 0
- Snow Avail For Transport
- none
Mostly cloudy day with some pockets of sunshine. Clouds had socked in the Gastineau/Roberts ridgeline, but Jumbo stayed out of the clouds the whole day. Calm winds, no precipitation and 40 degree temperatures made for a pleasent day touring.
Snowpack
Snow was wet and wet loose debris was entraining and moved very quickly in steep terrain. Once out of the couloir, this problem was easy to manage, and riding conditions improved.
Avalanche
Observed old avlanches and wet loose debris. Most notable avalanche on Peak 971. Unsure of details and timing, but I first observed this avalanche from a distance on Tuesday 5/12/26, so we knew it was not recent.