Aspen X Guides

There is alot of confusion over the correct way to fly with an avalanche airbag pack and what is allowed. International travel is different from that within the United States. The TSA has strict guidelines which applies for all pack designs, canister configurations and trigger mechanisms. Below is an excerpt from a TSA explosives expert who deals alot with the issues arising from Airbag packs and airline travel. The most notable change is that ABS which prides itself on claiming you can fly with a charged nitrogen canister is grossly mistaken. Under the latest guidelines, you cannot fly with ANY fully charged canister no matter what the gas is inside. The other change is that you cannot fly with a charged or live ABS trigger handle as these contain explosive charges. As per the TSA, the BEST PRACTICE for flying with a canister is to make sure the canister is empty and also remove the top so that it can be visually inspected. Leave the canister in the airbag pack and include the material safety data sheet with the canister.

FROM TSA EXPLOSIVES EXPERT:

I am an Explosives Specialist for TSA, and I want to clear up some bad information in this article. First off, regarding travel restrictions:

No avalanche rescue air cylinders, regardless of what you choose to call them, are allowed through TSA security unless screeners can visually verify that the cylinders are empty. For ABS systems, that means a punctured burst disc. For others, the cylinder head/valve must be removed to show an empty cylinder. Additionally, ABS trigger handles are not allowed through security if they contain a live explosive cartridge. Only expended handles are allowed. Determination of whether or not they have been activated can only be made by an Explosives Specialist, not a screener.

Secondly, regarding the blatant insult of TSA personnel. I don’t disagree that the competency standards for TSA are pretty low, especially at the basic screener level. However, it is unfair and petty for an otherwise reputable website to assume we’re all morons. Some of us work in less-visible parts of TSA, and we are highly educated and have a level of experience far exceeding that of the common citizen. The only confusion I see here is perpetrated by the article’s author for stating that the way in which you refer to your equipment will have any effect on our requirement to examine any air bottle we detect.

North Facing Meadows below Haystack on skin up to Capitol Creek TH

A few weeks ago with the sketchy snowpack in the roaring fork valley not offering much in the way of skiing traditional mid winter lines, I decided to explore a new area that I had been to several times in the summer but never in the winter. The capitol creek trail has little information as to winter access and where the road is plowed to so this was really a stab in the dark. Heading out mid morning in preparation to get a good few hour tour in before the Superbowl we set out. Surprisingly the road is plowed up quite high and you can use one of several plowed ditch culverts to park. The highest plowed area lies about 1 mile down from the normal 4WD parking for the summer ditch trailhead. We skinned up the road grade through the north facing aspen trees to the summer parking and enjoyed the beautiful views of Daly and Capitol. From here you can either follow the summer ditch trail or continue up the road to the ridge-top.

Capitol From Ditch Trail

Following the ditch trail we skinned on the flat grade until the steeper north east facing meadows. From here we wrapped around the backside of the steeper pitches and took to a safer skin trail up through the dense timber. On a normal winter this area would offer great steep and deep lines with about 1000+ vertical per lap. Wrapping around out of the woods onto the ridge we ascended to a highpoint with great views of Sopris, Daly, Haystack, and Capitol. Due to snow conditions we descended through some low angle open meadows to the dense forest and back out in some aspen glades down to the ditch trail. Not the most ideal skiing but that has been hard to find this year and the views made up for the lack of deep turns.

North facing medows and pitches from summer TH parking

Layer Analysis in the Snowpit

This past Sunday, Aspen Expeditions AIARE instructors led a tour up the Express Creek valley out of Ashcroft with a group of 4 AIARE Level 1 students for a day of touring and exploring the snowpack. The tour planning started the night before with students planning out the tour with the help of maps and the instructors guidance. Planning is a big aspect of organizing a successful and safe tour. It allows the group to plan accordingly for group dynamics, goals, turnaround times, group gear planning, and logistics.

Touring up below the M&M Chutes, Brown Mtn

With the tour plan dialed, the group met up at the Express Creek trailhead parking, loaded up, did a beacon check, and headed into the wilderness for the day. Touring up past Green Mountain and into the basin east of Brown Mountain the group was able to stick to their plan and find low angle terrain to gain elevation and eventually lead to their destination point. From here the group conducted a series of full snowpit tests using both the extend column test and compression test. Results were as expected with shears in the moderate range but fully propagating on low angle slopes which signifies instability. Overall it was a beautiful day for a tour.

ECT sheer test results in snowpit

Some good skiing to be had on the way out

Lightly Gladed area northeast of Brown Mtn, gladed terrain good for snow analysis and safe skiing below 30 degrees

If you are interested in a Level 1 or Level 2 AIARE course we have courses starting almost weekly. Give us a ring at 970-925-7625 to inquire and get out in the backcountry and see how it all works.

This past week guided trips went out on Richmond Ridge on the backside of Aspen Mountain and also up in the Castle Creek valley above Ashcroft. Safe skiing conditions and good powder could be found in all areas and the Colorado blue skies enhanced the views and vistas. The group skied around 2,200 vertical feet on Richmond Ridge and over 4,000 feet off of Green Mountain above Ashcroft.

Richmond Ridge Powder Turns

Getting the freshies. Supportive upper snowpack has lead to great skiing conditions

Beautiful Sunny Day for Off-Piste Skiing

Taylor Basin as seen from Green Mountain

Skinning up the west side of Green Mountain

Headwaters of Castle Creek in the background. Mace Peak on the left, Castle Peak in the back middle. Beautiful views everywhere

Layers of the Snowpack

Although we don’t experience much rain or mid-winter ice storms in the Aspen Area, it is a weather phenomenon which affects several good backcountry skiing areas of North America. This is especially true in interior British Columbia and coastal ranges where lower elevations lead to dramatic storms which can dump feet of snow followed by a rain to crust it all over. This article written by Karl Klassen of the Canadian Avalanche Centre gives a good overview of some unique crusts and how they form.

I’ve been involved in a discussion about crusts recently—specifically those sometimes referred to as “alien” or “mystery” crusts that seem to appear without an obvious reason or cause. People often associate these crusts with freezing rain but I think in many cases, rime is the culprit, although freezing rain and freezing drizzle could also be players.

Rain everyone understands: When an airmass becomes saturated with water vapour, clouds or fog or mist appear. These clouds (or fog or mist) consist of tiny water droplets that are held in suspension within the airmass. If enough of these tiny water droplets touch each other and join together (coalesce) droplets become large enough to fall out of suspension and liquid water falls from the sky. Technically, droplets larger than 0.5mm are rain and droplets less than 0.5mm are drizzle.

Flying with Avalanche Airbags – Clarification Explained

Photo Journal – Capitol Creek Ski Tour

AIARE Level 1 Tour Day – Photos From the Field

Photo Journal – Aspen Mtn Off Piste and Ashcroft Touring

Crusty Crusts – How mysterious crusts form