Vibe Spring2025 - Flipbook - Page 66
ABOVE: On April 4, 1937, the first giant slolom race in the U.S., the Franklin Edson Memorial Race, was held. Intended to begin at the summit, the race began halfway
up Right Gully as two recent surface avalanches hinted to potential trouble on the headwall. Photo by Harold Orne. RIGHT: The Avalanche Center crew pauses in
front of the avalanche informational board. From L to R: Patrick Scanlan, Jeff Fongemie, Charlotte MacDonald, Kate Moynihan.
HISTORY OF THE RAVINE
Tuckerman Ravine is known as the
birthplace of extreme skiing, according
to Patrick Scanlan, an avalanche forecaster and snow ranger at the MWAC.
In the 1930s, people were skiing in this
backcountry area before anywhere else
in the U.S. For this reason, the ravine
has become a legendary location. The
U.S. Forest Service (USFS) noticed that
bility, and just the historic spring atmosphere at Tuckerman,” says Moynihan.
ABOUT THE AVALANCHE CENTER
Every year, from December 1 to June 1,
the MWAC leads SAR operations in the
Cutler River Drainage area of the White
Mountains. In partnership with the USFS,
it provides expert mountain forecasting,
data based on research collaborations,
picture, which is another data point used
to assess risk. These reports should only
be used as a tool, not a gospel. Scanlan
says, “We paint the picture of what the
hazards are, and it’s up to the user to
decide how they are going to use that
information to make their decisions.”
This past February, we joined the
crew into the field to witness how they
perform a compression test to assess ava-
In 1952, they created a snow ranger program so someone could be up there managing
the area and informing the public of potential hazards to prevent accidents. It started as a
one-man crew, then became a team, known today as the Mount Washington Avalanche Center.
It was the 昀椀rst backcountry avalanche center in the U.S. and the only one east of the Rocky Mountains.
people were getting hurt in the bowl.
In 1952, they created a snow ranger
program so someone could be up there
managing the area and informing the
public of potential hazards to prevent
accidents. It started as a one-man crew,
then became a team, known today as
the MWAC. It was the first backcountry
avalanche center in the U.S. and the only
one east of the Rocky Mountains.
“Our avalanche center is one of the
more unique ones in the country because
of our search and rescue (SAR) responsi66
and enhanced safety efforts through
outreach programs and talking events.
The team creates a model of what they
think the avalanche risk is by looking at
different weather sources and taking field
observations, which are rated on a scale
from 1 to 5, or low to extreme. Then, they
post forecast updates on their website
and Avy: Avalanche & Weather Info, their
app that was recently released.
The crew also collects information from
the public, who can submit observations
through the app. This could even just be a
lanche risk, which was 3 out of 5 that day,
or “considerable.” Fresh snow was falling
heavily, as Moynihan dug a ditch in the
ground and formed a wall of snow—exposing different layers and the story each
layer told about previous snowstorms.
We watched as she continuously applied
pressure to the snow. After consistent
effort, a small avalanche occurred.
“Snowfall amount, as well as what
density of snow you have, are both important for understanding your avalanche
conditions,” says Marin MacDonald, the
MWVvibe.com / @mwvvibe
