Season 3, Episode 9 || Friday, February 9th, 2024 || In-Depth Storm Recap and Why, Occasionally, It’s Nice to Ride Chairlifts…

Hey folks, I’m back after taking last week off! In this episode I catch up on the State of the Snowpack and the latest backcountry conditions, before sharing my own personal avalanche story. 7 years ago this May, I triggered an avalanche that could have ended it all… and I’ve been wanting to share this story for some time. There’s a lot to learn from it, because I made pretty much every “human factor” mistake you can make… So, learn from my mistakes and hopefully avoid making them in the future! 

THINK SNOW!

Instagram: @sanjuansnowcast
Email: sanjuansnowcast@gmail.com
Venmo: @Chris-Dickson

Thanks as always to my sponsors!  
- Mountain Trip
- Silverton Avalanche School
- The Peter Inglis Avalanche Education Fund
- Jagged Edge Mountain Gear 
- Telluride Mountain Club

Music on this week’s show: 
“Ghetto Funk” by Queens Community Show Band
“Rugged Walk” by The Rugged Nuggets
“Cool Reggae Party” by Juanitos
“Funk for Food” by Moderator
“Mondo Whack” by Juanitos

Spring’s around the corner, there a storm in the forecast, and the kids are alright… the future is bright! In this week’s episode I discuss the state of the snowpack, stepping out, recent avalanches,  El Niño, the pole penetrometer, and much much more. I also share some events from the Community Calendar and we hear from the Outdoor Ed class at Telluride High about what they think of the backcountry. Give it a listen! 

THINK SNOW!

Instagram: @sanjuansnowcast
Email: sanjuansnowcast@gmail.com
Venmo: @Chris-Dickson

Thanks as always to my sponsors!  
- Mountain Trip
- Silverton Avalanche School
- The Peter Inglis Avalanche Education Fund
- Jagged Edge Mountain Gear 
- Telluride Mountain Club

Music on this week’s show: 
“Ghetto Funk” by Queens Community Show Band
“Rugged Walk” by The Rugged Nuggets
“Cool Reggae Party” by Juanitos
“Funk for Food” by Moderator
“Mondo Whack” by Juanitos

Episode 10! We’re trucking through winter and the high pressure is back. In this week’s episode, I provide an update on the State of the Snowpack, dig into our weekly Avalanche Report, and then share a conversation that I had with the Executive Director of the San Miguel Watershed Coalition, Adrian Bergere. We talk about the impacts of our snowpack on spring runoff, the limitations of Snotel stations, dust on snow events, and so much more. Give it a listen!  

THINK SNOW!

Instagram: @sanjuansnowcast
Email: sanjuansnowcast@gmail.com
Venmo: @Chris-Dickson

Thanks as always to my sponsors!  
- Mountain Trip
- Silverton Avalanche School
- The Peter Inglis Avalanche Education Fund
- Jagged Edge Mountain Gear 
- Telluride Mountain Club

Music on this week’s show: 
“Ghetto Funk” by Queens Community Show Band
“Rugged Walk” by The Rugged Nuggets
“Cool Reggae Party” by Juanitos
“Budos Theme” by the Budos Band
“Mondo Whack” by Juanitos

February is here and so is the pow! Huge totals from this last storm have buoyed our snowpack and brought it back to average. In this episode, I do a deep dive on the Storm Recap and the State of the Snowpack, before I nerd out on “crust-facet-combos” and your Word of the Day (it’s German!). 

I also offer a brief “Chairlift Chat” on why I chose to ride the resort during this recent storm cycle, and share some upcoming events that you should put on your calendar!

THINK SNOW!

Instagram: @sanjuansnowcast
Email: sanjuansnowcast@gmail.com
Venmo: @Chris-Dickson

Thanks as always to my sponsors!  
- Mountain Trip
- Silverton Avalanche School
- The Peter Inglis Avalanche Education Fund
- Jagged Edge Mountain Gear 
- Telluride Mountain Club

Music on this week’s show: 
“Ghetto Funk” by Queens Community Show Band
“Rugged Walk” by The Rugged Nuggets
“Cool Reggae Party” by Juanitos
“Suave” by Offthewally
“Mondo Whack” by Juanitos

It’s been a HOT ONE! Warm temps and strong sunshine prompted a natural avalanche cycle this past week across the Juans. In this week’s episode, I recap the natural and human-triggered avalanche activity we had this past week, before diving into a chat with my buddy Karl Welter, a ski patroller with the Telluride Ski Resort. Hot Karl walks us through the nuances of ski cutting and when it’s appropriate for the backcountry. Then I wrap things up with a look at the forecast (spoiler alert: its looking stormy!). Let’s hope that June-uary comes to a quick close, and February starts with a bang! 

THINK SNOW!

Instagram: @sanjuansnowcast
Email: sanjuansnowcast@gmail.com
Venmo: @Chris-Dickson

Thanks as always to my sponsors!  
- Mountain Trip
- Silverton Avalanche School
- The Peter Inglis Avalanche Education Fund
- Jagged Edge Mountain Gear 
- Telluride Mountain Club

Music on this week’s show: 
“Ghetto Funk” by Queens Community Show Band
“Rugged Walk” by The Rugged Nuggets
“Cool Reggae Party” by Juanitos
“Suave” by Offthewally
“Mondo Whack” by Juanitos

This episode was a tough one.  We’ve had a number of avalanche incidents that should serve as a wake up call to us all, culminating in the first fatal avalanche in Colorado this season, right here in the San Juans. In this episode, I give a quick recap of the weather, the snowpack, and the sheer amount of avalanches that have occurred so far in January.  Then, I jump into a conversation with my friend and fellow guide/educator, Chris Trullaz. Chris and I discuss the current conditions around the San Juans, how to handle spooky persistent slab problems, and how to submit a good observation to the CAIC. 

Thanks for listening. 

Instagram: @sanjuansnowcast
Email: sanjuansnowcast@gmail.com
Venmo: @Chris-Dickson

Thanks as always to my sponsors!  
- Mountain Trip
- Silverton Avalanche School
- The Peter Inglis Avalanche Education Fund
- Jagged Edge Mountain Gear 
- Telluride Mountain Club

Music on this week’s show: 
“Ghetto Funk” by Queens Community Show Band
“Rugged Walk” by The Rugged Nuggets
“Cissy Strut” by The Meters
“The Encouragement Stick” by Doctor Turtle 

What a week of weather it has been across the Juans! I’ll kick things off this week with a storm recap and an investigation as to why Sunday’s storm caught so many of us off guard. Then we’ll dive into a super informative conversation about public land management and some of the local issues facing the San Juans, with Hilary Eisen of the Winter Wildlands Alliance and Mason Osgood of the Sheep Mountain Alliance. These folks advocate for the continued access and preservation of our backcountry recreation areas and, not only that, they’re backcountry skiers too! Give it a listen, I guarantee you’ll learn a thing or two.

Learn more at:
winterwildlands.org
sheepmountainalliance.org

More storms are coming in the next few days and Juanuary is off to the races…
THINK SNOW!

Instagram: @sanjuansnowcast
Email: sanjuansnowcast@gmail.com
Venmo: @Chris-Dickson

Thanks as always to my sponsors!  
- Mountain Trip
- Silverton Avalanche School
- The Peter Inglis Avalanche Education Fund
- Jagged Edge Mountain Gear 
- Telluride Mountain Club

Music on this week’s show: 
“Ghetto Funk” by Queens Community Show Band
“Cool Reggae Party” by Juanitos 
“Cissy  Strut” by The Meters
“Mondo Whack” by Juanitos

Happy New Year! On this week’s show we discuss the current State of the Snowpack and how it will hopefully change soon, highlight some local events in the Community Calendar, and then sit down for a chat with Maddie Crowell, local ski guide, avalanche educator, and couloir hunter. Maddie gives us an update on the variability of snow conditions above treeline and why the couloirs of the San Juans make for some excellent ski mountaineering. 

THINK SNOW! 

Instagram: @sanjuansnowcast
Email: sanjuansnowcast@gmail.com
Venmo: @Chris-Dickson

Thanks as always to my sponsors!  
- Mountain Trip
- Silverton Avalanche School
- The Peter Inglis Avalanche Education Fund
- Jagged Edge Mountain Gear 
- Telluride Mountain Club

Music on this week’s show: 
“Ghetto Funk” by Queens Community Show Band
“Rugged Walk” by The Rugged Nuggets
“Cool Reggae Party” by Juanitos 
“Mondo Whack” by Juanitos

Happy Winter Solstice! 

In this episode, we lament our slow start to the season, and the shallow and weak snowpack… but then see a glimmer of hope in the form of a Santa Slammer Holiday Snowstorm that arrives on Saturday! The main focus of this episode, however, is RADIOS. We’ll talk about the new channels for the Telluride Radio Program, and I’ll share some tips for proper radio etiquette so we can all level up our backcountry radio game. THE CHANNELS HAVE CHANGED. Make sure you and your partners know about it and use the new channels if you play in the Telluride backcountry. Thanks for your help in getting the word out. 

For more information, go to www.telluridemountainclub.org/radios 

Happy Holidays and THINK SNOW!

Instagram: @sanjuansnowcast
Email: sanjuansnowcast@gmail.com
Venmo: @Chris-Dickson

Thanks as always to my sponsors!  
- Mountain Trip
- Silverton Avalanche School
- The Peter Inglis Avalanche Education Fund
- Jagged Edge Mountain Gear 

Music on this week’s show: 
“Ghetto Funk” by Queens Community Show Band
“Funky Christmas” by Snoop Dog
“Cool Reggae Party” by Juanitos 
“Mondo Whack” by Juanitos

It’s December, and its finally looking like Winter! On this week’s episode, I recap last week’s storm and take a peak and the weather before taking a DEEP DIVE into electromagnetic interference and it’s effect on our avalanche transceivers. It’s time to get technical and make sure we’re tuned up and tuned in for the Winter to come. 

THINK SNOW! 

Instagram: @sanjuansnowcast
Email: sanjuansnowcast@gmail.com
Venmo: @Chris-Dickson

Thanks as always to my sponsors!  
- Mountain Trip
- Silverton Avalanche School
- The Peter Inglis Avalanche Education Fund
- Jagged Edge Mountain Gear 

Music on this week’s show: 
“Ghetto Funk” by Queens Community Show Band
“Rugged Walk” by The Rugged Nuggets
“Cool Reggae Party” by Juanitos 
“Octopussy” by Juanitos
“Mondo Whack” by Juanitos