Talking Mountain Cirque: Perspectives and Lessons after 34 years

About this episode

Lynne Wolfe hosts a reflective discussion with Eric Trenbeath and Brad Meiklejohn about the lessons learned from a tragic avalanche incident 34 years ago.

Join us in giving a warm welcome to Lynne Wolfe for her first official episode as a host with the Avalanche Hour Podcast as she shares a thoughtful and reflective conversation with Eric Trenbeath and Brad Meiklejohn. A lot has changed about the avalanche industry in 34 years, but one thing we will never lose is the presence of uncertainty when we make decisions in avalanche terrain. On February 12th, 1992, ⁠an avalanche occurred in the Talking Mountain Cirque of Upper Gold Basin ⁠ in the La Sal Mountains of SE Utah. This accident involved six expert-level backcountry skiers and tragically claimed the lives of four: Mark Yates (contacted UAC Forecaster), Maribel Loveridge, Jeremy Hopkins, and Bill Turk. The group reflects on the terrain, snowpack, and heuristic factors that contributed to this incident, expanding these ideas to similar trends they see continuing in our community today and offering these lessons as learning opportunities for us all to bring into the mountains. The biggest takeaway: maintain a sense of wonder and be ready to be surprised by how snow behaves. About our host and guests: Lynne Wolfe is a retired Teton guide, editor of The Avalanche Review, and she…

People in this episode

Host: Lynne Wolfe

Guests: Eric Trenbeath, Brad Meiklejohn

Topics covered

• avalanche safety
• mountain terrain
• backcountry skiing
• decision making
• avalanche history

Keywords

• avalanche
• safety
• backcountry
• snowpack
• decision making
• mountain
• skiing
• history

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Utah Avalanche Center, AAI

Places: Talking Mountain Cirque, Upper Gold Basin, La Sal Mountains, SE Utah

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