Aasgard Pass fatality

[montypiton]

July 3 - A young woman descending Aasgard Pass lost control and slid into a moat below a rock about 1/3 of the way up the pass.

Companions and bystanders organized a rescue attempt, and lowered a climber into the moat, but that climber was unable to locate the woman. Chelan County Sheriff obtained navy helicopter assistance from Whidbey Island,and that helicopter inserted two navy corpsmen and two Chelan County Mountain Rescue volunteers at the accident site. A hole was excavated through the twelve foot deep snowpack twenty-five feet downhill from the moat, and a corpsman was lowered into that hole, but again failed to locate the woman. Another hole was excavated fifty feet downhill from the moat, and a corpsman lowered again - this time he was able to locate and retrieve the woman who was no longer alive after five hours lying in running water beneath the snowpack. This is the second "moat-fall" fatality in this location in three years. This year's summer snowpack is persisting far later than usual. Watch yourselves...consider carrying transceivers & shovels, and maybe even traveling roped if you're not certain where the watercourses are likely to be...

[genepires]

damn that is a bad way to leave this existence.

[stevetimetravlr]

so very very very sad.

[DPS]

Crazy. Eric Clements and I pulled a mother and daughter out of a moat on Baker like 15 years ago. Scary stuff.

[chris54]

Very sad. My condolences go out to the family.

 

[Raindawg]

Very sad. My condolences go out to the family.

 

She was a wonderful student in our University's small community:

 

Eatonville hiker who died in fall identified.

 

 

[Off_White]

I'm really sorry to hear this, I figured someone here would likely know her. I've always thought the moat is a scary place, and this heavy snow year really extends that hazard.

[kurthicks]

What terrible news.

 

The same thing just happened on Mt. Baker: http://www.bellinghamherald.com/2011/07/05/2089255/missing-climber-found-dead-on.html

[KaskadskyjKozak]

 

Does anyone know if this was skiers right or left? Last year we were warned by the ranger not to descend skiers left.

 

Very sad story indeed. The Enchantments are such a wonderful place to visit, and it is so sad when someone perishes merely enjoying this beauty. Rest in peace.

 

 

[montypiton]

Skier's left, just left of,(climber's right) and just above, the main cliffband. Those of you familiar with Aasgard will recognize that this location is a year-round drainage funnel. That is why the summer hiker's trail takes a line skier's right (climber's left), following fairly closely the line of cliffs below Colchuck Balanced Rock. Folks get lulled into the skier's left line descending, because it's a more direct descent, and presents an uninterrupted glissade or ski in spring and early summer... and it's usually fairly safe as long as you approach horizon lines (humps you can't see over) with caution and under control.

[Jason_Martin]

Dan,

 

It's my understanding that the fatality on Baker was in the same hole that you pulled those people out of all those years ago...

 

Jason

[DPS]

Dan,

 

It's my understanding that the fatality on Baker was in the same hole that you pulled those people out of all those years ago...

 

Jason

That doesn't surprise me, that moat forms everyear and is very close to the summer trail.

[Jon H]

Does anyone have a picture of this moat? I'm having trouble visualizing the specific hazard. I've never been on Baker.

[DPS]

On the way up Coleman Demming route - cross the river and break out of the trees. Climb up the dirt trail (in summer). Climbers right is a gulley with a cliff/waterfall. That is where the moat forms every year and has been the place of multiple accidents.

[ooanti]

What terrible news.

 

The same thing just happened on Mt. Baker: http://www.bellinghamherald.com/2011/07/05/2089255/missing-climber-found-dead-on.html

 

I was on Baker the same day, met a couple from Colorado camping out after summiting, and have due to the small number of people on the mountain that evening, have to assume she was the victim of this tragedy.

 

I want to reiterate what has been said here, I had a close call on my descent - glissading down an established glissade track, skiers left of the boot pack, took me over a bit of a ridge and revealed a large gaping hole in the snow directly in front of me. Not having time to arrest or slow, I planted my heals and leaped forward over the hole, and arrested on the other side of it. I am lucky and stupid.

 

Obvious lessons I take away - look at it before you are committed to it, stay out of obvious drainage in snowmelt conditions, don't glissade faster than you can react.

 

My heart goes out to to the climbers who were lost last weekend, I am truly humbled by my experience and wish such close calls on no one.

 

Please learn from this.

[stevetimetravlr]

Very sorry to hear of the Baker fatality also, what a dang shame. Aasgard Pass has always been a dangerous place, people get lulled into a false sense of security I think because it seems a trail.

I remember my first trip into the Enchantments in 1975, and the only guy we met broke his leg on the way out we found out later going down Aasgard. Many fatalies and injuries on Aasgard thru the years.

[goatboy]

I glissaded into that same hole the young woman died in, on Aasgard Pass, about 15 years ago. Fell a long way into the waterfall, wedged in between ice and rock... clawed my way out in a hypothermic haze and emerged about 30 feet downslope from where I fell in. It was horrifying. I consider it my closest call in the mountains.