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My Page: Bob Berwyn

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POWDER CATS

Finding room for lynx to roam in the wide-open spaces of Montana and Wyoming may not be a huge issue. But in crowded Colorado, researchers are finding that intensive recreational use -- especially snowmobiling -- is crowding the rare cats out of some critical areas.

At issue is the management of the Vail Pass Winter Recreation Area (VPWRA), a 50,000-acre pocket of rolling, forested terrain along Interstate 70, between Copper Mountain and Vail. Several commercial snowmobile tour and rental operators have asked the U.S. Forest Service for permission to increase trips in the area. Before issuing any new permits, the agency decided to take a hard look at the overall capacity of the area. As part of that study, White River National Forest biologist Liz Roberts wrote a formal biological assessment, trying to measure and quantify the impacts of recreation to the wildlife habitat in the area. Long story short, Roberts concluded that human activity in the area is “adversely affecting” the cats. [more]

DEADLY POWDER

A second deadly avalanche in the backcountry east of Vail prompted the Vail Daily to raise the question of whether the Forest Service should close a backcountry access point used to reach the area. The access point is located on the boundary between Vail Ski Area and adjacent national forest land, and local papers have been careful to point out that the two killer slides occurred outside the resort’s patrolled terrain. Local Forest Service rangers said their agency has not discussed closing the access point and doubted that it could enforce a closure.

The big snows across parts of the West have resulted in widespread avalanches and a tally of fatalities that seems to be roaring toward a record number, as reported by the Vail Daily in this Associated Press story. Across much of Colorado, the avalanche information center is still rating the danger as “considerable,” meaning that human-triggered slides are probably. [more]

THE LEGEND GROWS

Colorado powder hounds will get access to a new lift-served playground this week, as Arapahoe Basin announced the opening of Montezuma Bowl for Friday, Jan. 11. The 400-acre terrain expansion boosts the size of A-Basin by about 80 percent, a significant addition by any measure, especially for a small mountain that already skis big.

The new terrain includes a handful of steep double-black diamond shots, as well as a slew of intermediate groomed cruisers. The new bowl is mostly above-treeline and faces mostly south (with some east and west aspects), a nice addition for the high elevation ski area along the Continental Divide. The new lift may also spread out some of the congestion at A-Bain’s famed Pallavicini chair, where the wait can run to 20 minutes on busy spring weekends. [more]

SNOWY WEEKEND

Another Pacific storm hammered Colorado over the weekend, dropping several feet of snow over the state’s southern mountains and up to a foot at the major resorts around Aspen, Vail and Summit County. Wolf Creek and Silverton Mountain were the big winners, reporting 40 inches in the 48 hours ending Sunday (Jan. 6) afternoon, but other areas also tallied impressive totals: 26 inches at Telluride, 29 inches at Purgatory, 36 inches at Crested Butte, and 24 inches at Monarch Mountain. Another few inches was expected Sunday night statewide. Check the Colorado ski report here.

The new snow has resulted in a significant avalanche hazard in the San Juan Mountains and the Gunnison zone, around Crested Butte, where avalanche warnings were in effect through 5 a.m., Jan. 7. Natural and triggered slides are likely in those regions, and the Colorado Avalanche Information Center is recommending against travel in or under steep terrain. Underscoring the warning, the Aspen Times reported that a large natural avalanche narrowly missed a group of backcountry skiers near the base of Pearl Pass Road. [more]

AVY DEATH

A Jan. 4 slab avalanche in the steep, slide-prone East Vail chutes killed a 27-year old man, the Colorado Avalanche Information Center (CAIC) reported. According to a preliminary report from the CAIC, the avalanche ran on an east to east-north-east aspect at treeline. Three skiers were skiing the popular backcountry area near Vail, and all were equipped with avalanche search and rescue gear. The slide carried the skier over a cliff band and into a stand of trees. The other two members of the party quickly found the victim but needed the help of a rescue team to evacuate the victim.

The CAIC has been reporting frequent avalanches, both triggered and natural releases in the area for the past few weeks. On the day of the slide, the avalanche hazard in the Vail/Summit County zone was rated as moderate on all aspects near treeline, with a “complex and potentially tender” snowpack. Steady snows and strong winds loaded avalanche starting zones and built brittle wind slabs in the area. [more]

SKI TOWN SUSHI

If they made a movie, it would be called Escape From Summit County. Such was the scene New Years Eve in Colorado’s ski resort hub, as every major road in the county was at a gridlocked standstill when Interstate 70 finally re-opened after being shut down by a blizzard overnight. When state troopers finally started allowing a trickle of cars back on to the highway, floods of vacationers all tried to leave at the same time, jamming every major intersection and overwhelming town streets and county roads. The holiday blizzard made headlines in the Denver Post, and even rated a mention on the BBC and CNN’s international broadcasts, as seen in South America by a traveling Summit County resident.

But the storm wasn’t all bad news. The shelter system, administered by the Red Cross and local law enforcement agencies, worked well, and a steady stream of storms in December made for excellent ski conditions in the Colorado high country. Vail reported its snowiest December since 2002, and Aspen also flirted with all-time December snowfall records. [more]

SUSTAINABLE SKIING

If your ski town is anything like mine, then you’re probably familiar with all the creative ways old skis and snowboards are used. Here in my Summit County neighborhood, some people have fenced their quarter-acre lots entirely with old slats, and no ski or snowboard shop worth its salt is without a bench or a couple of chairs made from gear that is past its prime. One Breckenridge resident even recycles old poles into wind chimes. He sells them, with the money going toward Team Summit, one of our local youth racing outfits.

But let’s face it. Each year, thousands and thousands of skis, boots and snowboards end up in landfills around the region. Especially in areas with major resorts, including my own stomping grounds, this stuff can add up. Kevin Berg, one of the recycling experts with the High Country Conservation Center, said old equipment can make up a big chunk of the waste stream at times, especially when local shops retire their rental fleets. This stuff is not, to say the least, very biodegradable.

[more]

UTAH AVY DEATH

The Salt Lake Tribune reported that a Dec. 23 inbounds avalanche at The Canyons ski area killed one skier and injured another.

According to a report from the Forest Service Utah Avalanche Center, the slide ran at 11 a.m. on a slope that had been controlled for avalanches the previous day and was subsequently opened for skiing. [more]

HOLIDAZE

Christmas morning dawned snowy and cold in Summit County, just the way it should in the mountains of Colorado. After all, skiing a few inches of fresh powder with loved ones is the ultimate gift for anyone obsessed with sliding down mountains. Who needs anything more?

I tried to explain that to my son, Dylan, as he rummaged through the pile of presents under our tree. He turned to me at one point and said, “Where’s yours, Dad?”

How to tell him that making turns together during a radiant Christmas Eve sunset under the lights at Keystone the night before was by far the best gift I could get? How to make him understand these hours of father-son time are immeasurably more precious than any trinket or bauble? Will he realize it before he has kids of his own? [more]

SOLSTICE SOLILOQUY

It’s the evening of the solstice and a light snow is sifting. It’s piling up on the fenceposts, indifferent to the building hustle and bustle of the holiday season here in the resortopolis of Summit County. My son is in bed, and I wonder if there are visions of sugarplums dancing through his head. I doubt it, since he’s never seen a sugarplum, and neither have I. Comet the dog curls up on top of my feet as I sit down on the couch and I know I’m pinned in place, at least for a few hours.

Just as well. I have a lot on my mind. For one, there’s all that fresh fluff outside. Half a foot at the local resorts, and we have plans to go and get some bright and early, before the Front Range day trippers wend their way up slushy I-70, thronging through the tunnel and into the fair environs of Colorado’s Playground. It’ll be busy tomorrow, but we’ll be making our last runs of the day even before the parking lots are completely full, getting our fill of freshies by the time the first ski school bell rings at 10 a.m. [more]

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