JumboJim Posted June 12, 2011 Share Posted June 12, 2011 (edited) I've done backcountry snow travel (with other, more experienced people) by foot and pretty experienced with general mountaineering and navigation skills. However I've never done any backcountry skiing/boarding. Would snowboarding down from camp Muir be a bad idea this weekend if I have no beacon or formal avy training? I'm not worried about navigation and visibility. Would it be any more dangerous than booting it down? I can handle pretty much any type of snow and terrain on a board. Edited June 12, 2011 by JumboJim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jens Posted June 13, 2011 Share Posted June 13, 2011 It would be a great time! You can ski/ride all the way to the car right now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RaisedByPikas Posted June 13, 2011 Share Posted June 13, 2011 You will be fine as long as the weather is good. Just don't decide to take a "better" way down without knowing where you are going. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
genepires Posted June 13, 2011 Share Posted June 13, 2011 with low visibility, it is real easy to descend onto the nisqualie glacier. real easy. Do not discount this possibility as it is the most common mistake made for that route. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DPS Posted June 13, 2011 Share Posted June 13, 2011 (edited) A friend descending from Muir in a whiteout ended up on the Nisqually for a couple of days. When the weather cleared and she was able to hike out, she stumbled over the body of a snowboarder who had gone missing while descending from Muir in a whiteout a couple of years before. Edited June 13, 2011 by DPS Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dougd Posted June 13, 2011 Share Posted June 13, 2011 You will be fine as long as the weather is good. Just don't decide to take a "better" way down without knowing where you are going. I made that mistake (better way down) in the Mt Jefferson wilderness once... Cost me a couple hours getting back to the car. If I hadn't checked my bearing, it would have cost me much more... d Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JumboJim Posted June 13, 2011 Author Share Posted June 13, 2011 So it sounds like I'll be relatively okay. I've been on Rainier in whiteouts before and had to navigate out very slowly with a compass. That's not the part I'm worried about. I'm just generally worried about snowboarding down with no backcountry snowboarding experience. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sprocket Posted June 13, 2011 Share Posted June 13, 2011 I haven't boarded down Muir and wouldn't waste my time hiking up there if there was a marginal forecast. Besides conditioning, the view is the main reason to hike up there IMO. The issue is that if you follow the fall line you end up in one of the two glaciers on either side of the Muir snowfield. The guy that fell onto the Nisqually was told he could walk down with the ranger who was leading a group down in a whiteout. He declined the offer and headed down on his own and his whereabouts were unknown but presumed dead until a low snow year led to his discovery. If you haven't got this, it is useful if you have a compass. www.nps.gov/mora/planyourvisit/upload/GetYourBearings.pdf If you go come back with a report and some photos, I've always wanted to drag my board up there and ride down. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JumboJim Posted June 14, 2011 Author Share Posted June 14, 2011 (edited) I just said I have navigated off the nisqually glacier in a whiteout before with map and compass. I'm not asking about navigation. I'm only doing the hike for conditioning. I'm trying to figure out it bringing a snowboard up there is a bad idea of I have no backcountry snowboarding experience. I understand the whole navigation bit. Edited June 14, 2011 by JumboJim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drederek Posted June 14, 2011 Share Posted June 14, 2011 I found it difficult to ride when my legs were tired but the snow will be quite a bit different this time of year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dane Posted June 14, 2011 Share Posted June 14, 2011 Easy...and better than walking down. You should do it. On a decent day you'll have a great time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iceaxe23 Posted June 14, 2011 Share Posted June 14, 2011 A friend descending from Muir in a whiteout ended up on the Nisqually for a couple of days. When the weather cleared and she was able to hike out, she stumbled over the body of a snowboarder who had gone missing while descending from Muir in a whiteout a couple of years before. Oh wow I had to come down in a whiteout in may 2003 and worried about that happening. I was a total noob and probably would have done the same thing had it not been for the wands in place. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
genepires Posted June 14, 2011 Share Posted June 14, 2011 I've done backcountry snow travel (with other, more experienced people) by foot and pretty experienced with general mountaineering and navigation skills. However I've never done any backcountry skiing/boarding. Would snowboarding down from camp Muir be a bad idea this weekend if I have no beacon or formal avy training? I'm not worried about navigation and visibility. Would it be any more dangerous than booting it down? I can handle pretty much any type of snow and terrain on a board. I just said I have navigated off the nisqually glacier in a whiteout before with map and compass. I'm not asking about navigation. I'm only doing the hike for conditioning. I'm trying to figure out it bringing a snowboard up there is a bad idea of I have no backcountry snowboarding experience. I understand the whole navigation bit. The fact that you think navigation is not an issue means that it is even more of an issue. Cockiness is the first step to getting into a bad situation. I have been up that way about 10 times, coming down on snowboard about 7 of those times, and my last trip I went too far to the east and had to overnight bivy. (we had bivy gear) It can happen to anyone when the weather is foul. Navigation is even more difficult when you are ripping it up. Slight errors get magnified at speed. Impossible to follow a bearing while riding. And the tendency of the rider is to follow the good line and the good line goes to the glacier. People say it because people (self included) have done it. You are self proclaimed "no back country experience" and people are giving you the single best piece of info for that route. Quit being a dick. So if you want advice not blatantly related to navigation, here 1. if it is cloudy, walk up and down 2. if you are terrain over 15 degrees, you are off route. (except for panarama point) You should be on bunny runs most of the way. 3. if it is cloudy, bring bivy gear. Have fun and I hope you have a clear day to enjoy the views. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WildBlue Posted June 17, 2011 Share Posted June 17, 2011 I saw a guy snowboarding down from near Panorama Point last Wednesday afternoon. Maybe it was one of you guys? Visibility was low--It was close to whiteout conditions, but not quite. He was taking it pretty slow and stopping a lot. I took a video of him, and when I watched it on my computer at home it was pretty surreal. Just this faint black dot surrounded by total whiteness. If it was one of you I'll send you the video. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JumboJim Posted June 18, 2011 Author Share Posted June 18, 2011 No, it wasn't me. I would only snowboard down if it's clear. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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