Home > Trip Reports > January 18, 2014, Slide in Cement Basin

January 18, 2014, Slide in Cement Basin

1/18/14
WA Cascades West Slopes South (Mt Rainier)
7598
9
Posted by SilverFoxIV on 1/19/14 8:03am
On the way to Norse Peak I noticed a slide in Cement Basin.  It appeared to be a natural slide because no tracks near the ridge. 

http://www.nwac.us/observations/pk/85/

Slopes appeared to be stable now ready for some spring skiing.  Lots of pinwheeling on Southern slopes.

More pictures:  https://plus.google.com/photos/103727466702143735136/albums/5970627382694295569

Interesting how the crown goes right around the trees. Scary. Have traversed that slope many times .

Thanks for additional info via nwac web site.

How steep do you think that slope was?

Interesting, I've never actually seen that slope slide before.

author=avajane link=topic=30424.msg127350#msg127350 date=1390248021]
How steep do you think that slope was?



I believe it is ~35 degrees. I went back and doubt checked the topi, and it appears to be 35 degree depending where you measure.

SF

The area where a skier was killed in late 2002?

http://www.nwac.us/media/filer_public/e2/fb/e2fb0ee1-0994-4fb8-8a91-1095b773f491/cement_basin_report_12_29_02.pdf

Yep, that would be the one.

author=calvinh4 link=topic=30424.msg127352#msg127352 date=1390251905]
I believe it is ~35 degrees. I went back and doubt checked the topi, and it appears to be 35 degree depending where you measure.
35 degrees and wind loaded. I guess that will do it. I like the looks of those trees in the middle. Especially after seeing how even those small trees seemed to provide anchorage. I remember reading about that fatality. It was during a period of instability - and I'm sure great skiing conditions. Glad nobody was caught this time.
SF

Thanks for sharing.

Sure looks like the same slope that one of my ski partners triggered with some test-stomps at the top back around '97-ish. It was a day when a few test pits nearby showed moderately easy shears, and we'd skied some mellower slopes on roughly the same aspect just a ways south of there. We decided to go check out what I think was this slope, and Dave started the stomping. Nothing. Thought about going for it, and he stepped down to put his uphill ski where he'd been stomping, and started stomping just a bit lower. Nothing. Really thought about going for it; we said let's do it, and Dave did two more stomps. The whole slope instantly developed a massive spiderweb of cracks and slid much in the way that it appears in that photo, atop an ice crust. It was early in my days backcountry skiing in WA, and it really stayed with me for a while. We went back for another run or two on the mellower slopes to the south.

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SilverFoxIV
2014-01-19 16:03:56