December 28-29, 2024 Mt. Rainier Nordic Patrol Report

[Brian Carpenter]

A stormy, snowy weekend on the mountain!  Nordic Patrollers had to channel their inner wolverine to thrive in the snowy wilds..

Nisqually House needs:  TP, paper towels, dish soap.

Nisqually House adds:  Michelle donated two boot/glove dryers and a boot tray to the House.  Michelle is awesome-sauce!

Vehicles:  One Tahoe was left at Longmire as it has a check engine light/Service Traction Control light flashing. Kevin and Ed will attempt to get this checked out this week. Other Tahoe is at NH, keys near the phone. 

Park Keys:  Still no park keys. 

10 patrollers Saturday, 8 on Sunday.  Shout outs to new patrollers Al, Brandon, Ryan and Stephen for their positive attitudes and hard work!  Thanks also to veteran patroller Patrick Moore for leading Team 2 both days. 

Road opened on time on Saturday.  Snow throughout the day as well as winds and sleet, so everyone got their exfoliation treatment.  Nordic 1 tried to make it to Reflection lakes but didn't get there due to incredibly deep snow. Took 1.5 hours to travel the 0.5 mile from Narada Falls to Canyon Wye.  Poles were rescued and lots of folks talked to. Nordic 2 went up to the base of Pan Face and were lonely in the whiteout conditions until they ran into a solo skier coming down from Pan Face who reported being in an avalanche, not buried but lost gear.  One member of Nordic 2 set off a widely propagating crack on a small rollover near the bottom of Pan Face. Some training for the three new patrollers was done.

Road was closed to the public on Sunday.  Another snowy, blizzardy day, but better snow conditions. Using Admin access, Nordic 2 traveled to Paradise, checked out the Myrtle Falls bridge and reset the poles and evaluated the access conditions.  Nordic 2 continued on into Edith Creek basin, then down to the road and back up to Paradise. After a short break they went down to Barn Flats and Devil's dip to check/reset poles.  Nordic 1 attempted Reflection Lakes and made it this time, although they had to break trail/wallow in the new snow from Inspiration Saddle down to the lake. Attached is a photo showing the sign at Reflection Lakes before it was rescued/dug out. Lots of poles were almost buried.  Note to next weekend's leads: there are 6-7 poles stashed at Inspiration Saddle that should be used to fill in the route south from the saddle to Reflection Lakes. Poling is particularly scarce in the big flat/open area at the bottom of the drop down from the saddle.  

Brian