Big Avalanches on the Nisqually (Rock AND Snow)

Late in February, we received word from the Pacific Northwest Seismic Network and the University of Washington that there had been a noticable surface seismic event (not an earthquake) that appeared to be near the top of the Nisqually Cleaver.  You may recall that in the summer of 2012, a large portion of the Nisqually Cleaver gave way at about 12,000 feet and tumbled down to about 8000 feet on the Nisqually Glacier.  This wasn't as big, but nevertheless the PNSN and the UW gave us a heads up and asked if anyone had seen anything.

Reports and pictures started to come in.

I hiked up to Camp Muir on Friday, February 28th and was able to snap these quick, low-res images.

You can see the brownish stain on the surface of the glacier below the Nisqually Cleaver.  This is exactly where the large rock avalanche occured in 2012.

However, what was more noticeable was a snow avalanche that occured from the 11,500 foot level on the Nisqually Icefall and travelled all the way down to the terminus of the Nisqually Glacier.  I have seen avalanche debris on the Nisqually down to about 6500 feet before, but never down to the terminus!

Here are some pictures.

6800 feet to 6200 on the Nisqually Glacier.  The avalanche debris was powdery and dry up above, but became loose and wet down below.

6400 feet to 5600 on the Nisqually Glacier.

6100 feet over the terminus.  The avalanche lobe nearest the foreground ended up spilling over the eastern terminus of the Nisqually at this point and travelling all the way down the lower western terminus below the Nunatak.

This was one of the longest, but not largest, avalanches I've ever seen on Mt. Rainier!

Check out the Google Earth map of the two avalanches.

Snow avalanche in red.  Rock avalanche in blue.

Chad Kellogg

Sad news from Patagonia. Our heartfelt sympathies go out to everyone who knew Chad and are currently dealing with the tragic news.

Chad left a huge mark here at Rainier and his legacy and accomplishments will not be forgotten.

Volunteer Opportunity

So as some of you may know the National Park Service has many volunteer opportunities available for the generous souls that feel the urge to give their time and effort to make our parks a better place. Here at Rainer hundreds of people put in thousands of hours of volunteer time every summer doing everything from working on trails to answering questions at ranger stations. Especially in these times of very slim budgets many of us have come to rely on the support of volunteers to accomplish everyday tasks and just keep the park open. So thank a volunteer next time you visit, but now onto the main point of this post...

The climbing ranger program is looking for a few volunteers for the 2014 climbing season! Due to the nature of the work we perform we ask a lot of our volunteers, but for the motivated person interested in gaining experience in the type of work we do this is a great opportunity. Volunteer climbing rangers will need to commit to a full summer of work and come in with a bit of experience (mostly in the climbing realm). As a volunteer climbing ranger you can expect and will be expected to do the following tasks at a minimum:

• Work a full time schedule as part of a team of rangers in the alpine areas of Mt. Rainier.
• Staff high camps (Muir and Schurman) throughout summer.
• Participate in climbing patrols on all areas of Rainier. 
• Staff ranger stations, and issue permits and provide information to climbers. 
• Interact with park visitors and climbers in a professional manner. 
• Participate in Search and Rescue operations.
• Participate in resource protection and monitoring. (Yes, this does include dealing with human waste)
• Be willing to learn and motivated to contribute to our team.

Volunteers should have the following skills at a minimum:

• Solid alpine and glacial climbing background. (detail in resume. route & grade)
• Current EMT or WFR. (experience preferred, detail any SAR experience in resume)
• Ability to function in harsh alpine environments in all types of weather.
• Avalanche level II education, with working knowledge of avalanche science and making sound judgement in avalanche terrain. 
• Ability to ski/snowboard in intermediate to advanced back country terrain.
• Ability to effectively communicate climbing and skiing conditions to public. 

For all this work we will provide the following:

• Housing in Mt. Rainier for the duration of your stay.
• Stipend of $20/day with the occasional opportunity for other paid work. 
• As much training in NPS operations and search and rescue as you can stand. (this is a great way to resume build for future employment)
• Equipment considered essential for duties (although volunteers will need to provide some of their personal equipment to make it all work. You should have it all if you're a climber.)
• Rewarding work environment! Plus many intangibles...life experience, awesome views, etc...

So if you or anyone you know might be interested and qualified send them a link to this post. Applicants will need to submit a resume detailing their experience in everything mentioned above, along with anything else you think we should know about you. This is a timely thing as we start our season in mid-April. (concessions can potentially be made for you college folk who are not out of school by then)

Email resume to Brian_Hasebe@nps.gov or contact if you would like additional information.