Including the avalanche in the Snow King backcountry that resulted in a short-haul operation on Friday, Teton County Search & Rescue was called regarding three skier-involved avalanches in 24 hours at the end of last week.
On Friday, at 10:26 p.m., TCSAR volunteers were paged regarding a skier-triggered avalanche on the so-called Taco Bell Couloir on the east face of East Gros Ventre Butte. Two skiers had dropped in to ski the line near the top, causing an avalanche that ran the length of the slide path into Flat Creek. As TCSAR volunteers were gearing up to go into the field, they were told to stand down after it was discovered that there were no burials—or swiftwater rescue in the creek. Please visit the Bridger-Teton Avalanche Center to see a thorough site visit regarding this avalanche.
TCSAR rescued an injured skier from No Name Canyon after he was caught in an avalanche, the third avalanche call that TCSAR received in 24 hours. Photo: TCSAR
On Saturday, at 2:42 p.m., TCSAR volunteers were called to respond to another avalanche involving a skier, this time in No Name Canyon. The skier had been part of a guided group of three that had entered the backcountry from the JHMR boundary. There were no burials associated with the avalanche but one skier sustained injuries that prevented him and the rest of his group from exiting the backcountry on their own power.
TCSAR responded to the accident with a team in the helicopter, which was able to land near the site. The skiers were loaded into the ship and flown to the landing zone at the base of Teton Village. The helicopter returned to pick up the remaining SAR volunteers in the field before flying back to TCSAR hangar in Jackson, completing the mission in one hour.