Quick Stats: 7.2 Miles & 3,023′ gain via Mount Baldy Ski Hut Trail from Manker Flat.
Happy New Year! I was on the lookout for a fun way to spend the start of 2022, so I decided my first trip to Baldy Bowl would be for me.
I was nervous about going out to the Baldy Bowl solo due to the avalanche risk, but I assumed there would be a lot of experienced, prepared people out there, so figured I’d bring my avy gear and meetup with a group.
There were a lot of people out there, and while some of them may have been experienced, none were prepared. I was the only person out there with an avalanche transceiver, probe, and shovel. There was a large group of guys stopped right before the Ski Hut Trail starts not far from Manker– one of them had a dead headlamp, but luckily a certain lady always carries spare AAA batteries in her pack, and happily helped this guy out. When I learned they weren’t as prepared as I would like, I considered whether I should try going up Register Ridge instead of the Baldy Bowl since ridges have a lower avalanche risk. I ultimately would try this decision, only to abandon it immediately after due to deep, unconsolidated snow. (I didn’t have my snowshoes with me.)
Back on the Ski Hut Trail, I stopped for a snack and to swap my poles for my ice axe as I was ready to tackle the Baldy Bowl. Since I was the only one with a transceiver and that group of guys didn’t seem like my crowd, I decided to venture off on my own, ascending the safest part of the bowl (the edge of the bowl far to climber’s left) as the sun was rising.
When I got to the top of what could be considered the south ridge near the various named chutes, I heard what I imagine an avalanche sounds like off in the mountains to the west. I then realized the slope I was on seemed like it was in that 30° range, there was sastrugi all over, and then I thought about the recent weather. Only a couple days prior we had a huge winter storm come through, and I remembered a simple test that one of my guides had taught us on our AIARE 1 course: Using your hands or the adze of your axe, isolate a section of snow around 30cm x 30cm, and then gently pull on it. If this requires force to separate from the slope and doesn’t separate too clean, things may be pretty consolidated. However, if little effort is required and it’s a clean separation, you may have discovered a slab that could be a sign of dangerous conditions.
As I started work on isolated a square of snow, before I could fully isolate my test slab and pull it with my hands it separated and slid down the slope. This felt a little spooky, but I also wanted to remain optimistic that it was a fluke, and decided to try a different spot to do a second test. Same result.
I immediately made my way down the bowl and the hell out of there. People asked me if I had summited while I made my way back to Manker Flat, and I was happy to tell them all why I was headed back without reaching the top. The weird part was how few people even knew what slab like conditions meant, or that there was even avalanche risk in the first place.
This is one of those moments where I had a sort of epiphany. I’ve read about how Mount Baldy can be a very dangerous mountain even though it’s almost accessible enough to be considered the front country. That accessibility is the problem. A lot of people that don’t understand winter mountaineering, or don’t take it seriously, now find themselves in a potentially dangerous situation without the knowledge or skills necessary to keep themselves safe. I’ve also read about people that die out there, need rescuing, and even R.J. Secor had a major accident out there. It all came together, and was infinitely clear why this simple snow climb is so dangerous.
When people tell me to be safe on my adventures, I always assure them I will be because I have so many adventures planned for the future; how will I do all of them if I die?
Climb on, safely.