Avalanche forecasters cover 10 areas around state
summit county » It’s a blue- sky morning on Mayflower Gulch, a popular backcountry area nearCopper Mountain. And while other backcountry users traipse past in search of powder, Scott Toepfer has dug himself a handsome 3by- 4- foot snow pit.
The veteranColoradoAvalanche InformationCenter forecaster runs a series of tests, sawing off columns of snow, tapping the surface to see where the weaknesses lie and even measuring snow crystals through a magnifying lens. In one test, he slides the long saw into what he sees as aweak layer about 2 feet below the surface. In a split second, the layer cracks horizontally, and a 100- pound block of snow leaps out from the cross- section Toepfer has cut and lands at his feet.
“This means that even in a low- avalanche risk area, a slide is still possible,” Toepfer said.
Toepfer can talk snow all day. It’s his job, after all, and here in the avalancheprone Colorado backcountry, Toepfer and hisColorado Avalanche Information Center colleagues are on the front lines of providing avalanche- risk information. They use field tests and weather forecasting technology to help backcountry users plan their trips and, hopefully, get home safely.
It’s a job that requires dedication, long hours and early mornings, and it is laden with a high- stakes responsibility — of course, it doesn’t hurt that part of the job description is backcountry skiing several days a week. Toepfer said forecasters try to get all the information out there through a variety of outlets and in a timely manner. It’s up to individuals to make their own decisionswhen it comes to what they’ll ski and how prepared they’ll be, but the forecasters are well aware thatwhat people decide to do with the reports andwarnings can be a matter of life and death.
“This is why people can’t outrun avalanches andwhy, if you get buried, you can’t breathe,” Toepfer said, gesturing to the dense slab of snowthat just fell out of his snow pit. “Even on days where the risk is labeled ‘ low,’ people tend to forget — theremay be a lowprobability of a slide. But the consequence, if there is, is really high. A number of people can ski something just fine, but someone can hit a weak spot and set something off.”
A lifelong skier, Toepfer takes stock of the surrounding peaks. He points out several small slides that he thinks took place one to two weeks ago. He observes the slow, smooth, lens- shaped clouds that are moving in over the jagged peaks and notices that contrails are lingering in the air. It all points to changing weather patterns, he said.
There’s the fun part, too. He decides to ski up a mellow slope nearby, taking some measurements on a windblown cornice at the top beforemaking tracks in the powder.
“I certainly don’t want anyone to get the impression that I don’t love to ski,” he grins.
Toepfer is among 15- plus Colorado Avalanche Information Center forecasters who cover 10 areas around the state. Besides the glorious part of being out in the field, their job also includes weather forecasting at the Boulder headquarters, teaching avalanche safety classes around the state and keeping tabs on slides, and avalanche- related injuries and deaths.
Possibly the biggest unsung heroes of the organization are the highway forecasters who work with the Colorado Department of Transportation to mitigate avalanche risks on the state’s interstates and highways.