Blog Crystal : Crystal Mountain Washington : Skiing, Snowboarding, Backcountry Skiing, Snowshoeing, Lessons, Rentals

Rusty recently wrote a comment about GMRS radios.  I thought other people might be curious about them as well so I'm copying my (brief) response here:

I always wondered if the ski patrol monitors any GRMS channels for emergencies.  I seem to recall that Mt. Baker's ski patrol monitors Ch 9.11.    I know GRMS range is limited but it would provide another avenue for people to contact patrollers in case of emergency.

Corey Responds:

I don't know a WHOLE lot about this (the initials are actually GMRS for General Mobile Radio Service) but I know they share some frequencies with FRS ("family") radios, though apparently can be of higher quality and cost a bit more. 

The "family" radios don't work very well in our highly-angulated terrain.  We experimented with monitoring 9.11 a few years ago, and found it pretty ineffective, what with having to listen to kids screaming what kind of sandwich they wanted Mom to fix them for lunch and all.  Maybe people respect GMRS or 9.11 better these days--I haven't checked.  For me, the amount of "nuisance" traffic was too distracting.

In any case, I like THIS plan better:  if you're in trouble, find ANYBODY reliable on any channel, and ask them to notify Ski Patrol. 

Cell phones work many levels of magnitude better 'round these parts and proved invaluable in a couple of recent incidents over the ridge in Mt. Rainier National Park and over the other ridge on the east side of the Pacific Crest.  Plus, I'm told battery life and depletage (I made-up that word) are more reliable with cell phones than those little radios. 

Verizon transmits from BOTH Grubstake Peak and Gold Hills at Crystal Mountain.  AT&T from Grubstake Peak, and T-Mobile from either the Base Area or Gold Hills. 

Those with cell phones are encouraged to keep the Ski Patrol "Emergency Only" number, 360-663-3064, programmed in your phone, and keep it turned on if you're separated from your companions!

I've never heard that reaching us is enough of a problem to warrant getting everyone to purchase new equipment.  But if I'm missing something, please let me know!
 

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More and more people seem to have taken up the sport of hiking uphill into the runout zones of avalanche paths in A-Basin, when we have it closed.   I dunno, maybe they caught Olympic fever this week and wanna get a jump on it being a 2014 demonstration sport.   In any case, ya' gotta admire their willingness to earn-their-turns even if you can't admire their decision making!

But really, I know it's not fair for me to call it "decision making" because at least SOME of the people we talk to out there aren't savvy about how far avalanches can run, and bury people.  They just haven't developed the "mountain sense" to recognize conditions that can (sorry, Marketing Department, but I have to use this word here) KILL them, or the judgement to make choices to protect themselves.  

Sooo.... in response--again, to these CHANGES we've noticed in guests' behavior--we've extended the A-Basin closure line down by the bottom of (C-6) the High Campbell chairlift.  We've put 2 gates in to allow access at the most popular entry/exit points when lower A-Basin is open. 

When A-Basin is closed, the gates will be closed. 

When avalanche hazard warrants restricting access to the Damn Fine Forest  trees, the gates may be closed. 

When the on-hill information kiosks (Top of Chinook, REX, Green Valley & Forest Queen) indicate that Southback is closed but those gates are open, it's OK to ski the Damn Fine Forest  trees as long as you don't ascend above a traverse...or higher than the first bench above the right-hand gate.  (And kookie "ascending traverses" don't count; just go with gravity, OK?)

Bottom of High Campbell, looking South-ish (arrows point to gates)

Bottom of High Campbell, looking East (arrows point to gates)

Rope-ducking continues to be prohibited at Crystal Mountain because shwoo-boy, you never know what kind of hazard we might be warning you away from on the other side!  Expect this new line-extension to be a work-in-progress as we figure out it's best placement, and feel free to give us suggestions! 

And....If you're familiar with the area and stumble upon a bunch of stranded skiers/boarders, corralled by our ropeline, please send them to the nearest A-Basin exit  with our apologies!   ;o)

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Last Saturday, January 30th, 3 skiers got lost in the fog right as we patrollers were conducting end-of-day upper mountain sweep about 3:45pm. They were finally found and returned to the ski area around 1am—over 9 hours later!  I figure others might benefit from knowing a bit more of how that sort of thing can occur to avoid getting similarly stranded.

Patrollers Mike & Ben were sweeping Southback that day–Ben, up the King and Mike toward Three Way Peak. They caught up with the 3 at Kirner’s Corner, just to the right of Little Alaska (informal names) which is the buttressy part of Avalanche Basin.  As they hiked, the most-experienced of the group indicated he’d skied Southback many times before.  I haven’t talked to the three, but mutual friends tell me that he’s an experienced South Backcountry skier who doesn't do dumb stuff and normally has a great sense of direction.  Once the group reached the top of the King, they told Ben they were heading down the Southeast side and that they planned to head left.  If you’re familiar with that terrain you know that puts them on what we call “SE Left” or, if they continued and crossed the ridge, the North side of Silver King.

At the top, the 3 left Ben as skier’s usually do, making fairly fall-line turns. Ben didn’t stick right with them since he was sweeping and also checking for others who might be disoriented in the thick fog.  He made wide traverses, periodically yelling “closing” and stopping to listen for responses.

We figured out later that it was so hard to see in the fog that the group ended up unintentionally traversing far to the right rather than veering left as planned. That’s how disorienting fog and the undulations of wind-drifted snow can be!  The group went SO far, in fact, that they crossed the entire SE side of the King, crossed “The Beach” (informal name for the flat-topped ridge of Silver Basin) and headed down towards Crystal Lakes in Mount Rainier National Park.

Apparently the group realized they were lost around 6:45pm and used cell phones to call 911.  It took until 7:30pm for them to finally get routed to Crystal ski patrollers.  The lesson to take away may be that you’ll want to have the Ski Patrol Emergencies Only phone number (360-663-3064) handy in your cell phone Contacts list.

When they finally reached Patrollers by phone, they could tell they were by lakes, so were assuming they were by Henskin Lake rather than Crystal Lakes.

This Summertime view from Google Earth may help if you’re unfamiliar with the area.  (North is at your 7:00 and the base lodge is just off-screen to the left.)  See how in this view, Henskin lake is way over to the left, and Crystal Lakes are way over to the right?  Pretty far apart, huh!

Patrol Director Paul Baugher could tell by the group's description of the terrain that they were not where they thought they were.  So teams of Patrollers were dispatched to search likely areas, and Mike and Max eventually caught up with the group and guided them out, down the Crystal Lakes trail.  After the snow petered out, that was close to 2,000 vertical feet of downhill hiking in ski boots.  Youch! 

When they reached State Route 410 (in the closed-in-winter part of the Park) Ranger Monica was there with a vehicle to shuttle them back up to the Ski Area.  Luckily for the 3 (and un-luckily for the rest of us) this is an el nino year and they didn't have to wait for the road to be snow-plowed before vehicles could drive up it as is usually the case!

It's pretty common--human nature perhaps?--for skiers & boarders to ride all day and save their biggest adventures for right at closing, when everyone's the most tired and it's closest to option-limiting darkness.  Don't be so attached to your "goal" that you overlook environmental factors that can turn an adventure into a tragedy.   Luckily THESE guys were hearty and everything turned out OK.!  

Shwoo! 

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A loong, loooooong time ago somebody asked about the old K2 Face gate, wondering why we moved it so high.

Actually, the K2 Face gate isn’t too high. It’s just not there. In fact, K2 Face isn’t there! Poof--Whole thing—just gone!  Look at your Trail Map.  It vanished!

They say you can’t teach old dogs new tricks, but apparently you CAN teach old patrollers new tricks. Or maybe they learn ‘em on their own.

A few years ago, after looking at accident data and “near misses” in (the area formerly known as) K2 Face, we determined that having a gate there was encouraging the wrong kind of people to go in there. When you’re an Expert skier, steep side-hills can be kind of fun: Swoop, swooooooop, swoop, swooooooooop! 

But Despite the double-diamond EXPERTS ONLY signs, the CAUTION signs, and LONG SLIDES POSSIBLE signs, beginner & intermediate skiers & boarders would go in there and instead ‘tater down into the trees--tumble, tumble, tumble, tumble, crash.   And these weren't the fun kind of crashes that you laugh and tell your friends about later.  These were painful crashes--the kind that are bad for bodies.  As such, they're also bad for business.

As we considered what was happening, it occurred to us that anyone challenged by having to approach from the low Bear Pits gate (Shot 1) probably shouldn’t be in K2 anyway. So we took away the gate, took away the name, took away the designation. It’s now just another part of the Bear Pits area. You’re welcome to go there by traversing from the Shot 1 gate or by coming down from the High Campbell chairlift. But please don’t duck the rope line. We don’t look kindly (i.e. we have to pull passes) if anybody puts “sucker tracks” into closed areas or under “Enter Through Gates Only” lines.
 

So it's a little bit more of a workout getting to that area now, but if you belong there, I'm sure you'll be up to the task! 

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Ken commented about the renaming of "Iceberg" to "Middle Ferk's".  He thought it might have been Marketing having trouble selling a ski run called “Iceberg”.  That makes sense, but there’s an even better story.  I figured others might be interested too, so let me take this opportunity to tell the story again.

Here's an exerpt from a letter written to the National Ski Patrol last year, compiled by a number of volunteer patrollers. 

It is my distinct privilege to nominate a truly distinguished patroller for the prestigious recognition as  National Outstanding Alpine Patroller. Steve Ferkovich has been a patroller for the National Ski Patrol System for over fifty (50) years. As you will see from his record, he is the Patroller whom the Crystal Mountain Ski Patrol admires and emulates. His ongoing selfless giving to the skiing public as well as to the National Ski Patrol exemplifies the never ending service he has been providing with a professional attitude, constant enthusiasm and love for skiing, patrolling and people.

Steve began patrolling in 1957 at the age of 15, when his student’s season pass was 50 cents at Ski Cooper ski area outside Leadville Colorado.  In 1967, he moved to Washington and joined the Crystal Mountain Ski Patrol and has continued to patrol here for the past 42 years. In 2000, when he was 58 years old, he retired from his career after 5 years at Boeing and 30 years as a bridge design engineer with the City of Seattle. However, he continued to serve the skiing public not only as a volunteer patroller but as a paid patroller as well. He now patrols 4 to 5 days a week, splitting his time between being a volunteer and a pro patroller. He averages over 100 days patrolling per year. He continues to redefine the image and substance of a consummate patroller. His effortless skiing and toboggan running in any snow condition or any terrain on any mountain would make a patroller half his age wishing they too could be as efficient and tireless. He has faithfully, dutifully, reliably, professionally, and honorably represented and fulfilled all that the white cross of the National Ski Patrol is imagined to be.

Throughout his patrol career, he has treated most every injury imaginable in a wide range of snow conditions and terrain. It is simply impossible to list all the types of injuries he has treated from the approximately 1,500 toboggans with injured skiers he has safely brought to the First Aid Room. He has also counseled countless children and adults about snow safety. Just as he has counseled the skiing public about safety, he has provided similar service to the numerous young patrollers, with training, mentoring and professional expertise only had by someone of his caliber. He has also served in many Patrol Leadership functions including his current position of Patrol Leader.

On repeated occasions throughout his patrol career, Steve has been recognized by his fellow patrollers and received many local patrol awards, including:

• Outstanding Alpine Patroller
• The very coveted CMSPHWB (Crystal Mountain Ski Patrol Hard Working Bastard) Gold Award, which he received on two different occasions
• Most Inspirational Patroller awards (both Pro and Volunteer) which no other patroller has won more times (three) in our 46 year history.
• Three “Director Trophy” awards for serving the most days in a season,
• An award for bringing down the most toboggans with injured patients in a year,

as well as many others in addition to many NSP awards.

In addition to his patrol duties and accomplishments, Steve has been very active in contributing to the sport of skiing outside of the NSP. He has organized the Jimmy Heuga Express Racing Team for 14 years, 1990 – 2004, and has raised well over $10,000 to support multiple sclerosis research.

In 2006, while riding on a chairlift, Crystal Mountain’s General Manager John Kircher and his wife Kim asked Steve what was his favorite top-to-bottom run at Crystal.  Little did he know that they were planning to rename his favorite run to honor him and his 50 years of patrolling.  And so, Iceberg Ridge, Iceberg Gulch, and Lower Bull Run became Upper Ferk's, Middle Ferk's, and Lower Ferk's. 

If you're not aquainted with Steve, below is a picture of him on the phone at the top of High Campbell, probably organizing end-of-day sweep or a quick opening of South Backcountry gates as Patrol Leader on his volunteer weekend.

In the end, Steve was runner-up to the National Outstanding Alpine Patroller of the Year.  That award usually goes to someone who has given a great deal of themself to the skiing public and the functions of the National Ski Patrol.  It's usually someone who has attended a lot of meetings, participated in a lot of conference calls, visited a lot of neighboring ski areas and submitted a lot of travel expense vouchers.

Though Steve has certainly done all those things that inspire us with his off-the-hill contributions, those of us who work with him each day and each weekend find the greatest inspiration in the passion he brings to what  we all share--a sheer love of the mountains and the sport of skiing. 

So we prefer to think his contributions may have eclipsed those of the person who ultimately won that award, had Steve not been just so darn busy skiing!   And as we struggle to keep up with him, we imagine Ferk the way we see him each day--just like in the photo below--blowing through the powder at the end an avalanche control route last year:

That's why it's called Ferk's!

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We have re-established the mid-slope "traverse-to" gate from Campbell Basin to Avalanche Basin!

The New Plan
During times of higher instability, the Ski Patrol may keep the mid-slope Avalanche Basin gate closed until those responsible for the snow safety program are satisfied that most of the slide paths have been adequatedly skied (released and/or compacted) from the top. A sign specifically pertaining to the mid-slope A-Basin gate will be placed at the Throne Saddle near the start of the hike to South Backcountry when Southback is open, but that gate is not. 

The Throne, showing the traverse across "Hamburger" to the gate (arrow).      (Photo: Chris Morin)

The Southeast side of The Throne with the Gate (arrow)             (Photo: Chris Morin)

So that's the word--the gate is back, though in a bit different configuration.  After a big dump (I'm talking about SNOW for non-skiers/boarders who have found their way here) don't make a bee-line for that gate without checking the sign at the saddle as you pass by.  It will not always open when Southback opens, as it usually did in the past.

Why, you ask?  OK, picture this: 

There’s nothing quite like the feeling on a deep powder day when you drop into an untracked chute and 3 or 4 snorkel-breath turns down, you notice the slope is moving along with you. A quick cut to the right or left and the sluff of loose powder continues harmlessly past you. You catch your breath then continue, leaving perfect hero tracks in the fluffy, deepening debris.

That’s good, right?

Now imagine this: Same deep powder day, same untracked chute. You stop to let the growing sluff pass by you just as some Wingnut zips out from around a corner, traverses below you across the middle of your line and gets buried by the snow you just released. Now you and your buddies’ great powder morning gets sacrificed trying to dig out an airway for someone you don’t even know, in the 4-or-so minutes before asphyxia sets in.

Less good.


As many of you know, the Ski Patrol likes to get terrain open as soon as safetly possible after new snow falls. Nothing is as valuable in the mitigation of avalanche accidents as the tracks of skiers and snowborders that cut up slabs and compact weak layers in the snowpack. “Hike-To” terrain such as South Backcountry receives less compaction than the “In-Area” parts of Crystal. That’s part of why those AVALANCHE PRONE AREA signs, along with recommendations to TRAVEL WITH A SHOVEL, BEACON, PROBE & PARTNER, are posted at each gate. We expect the people who choose to travel there are choosing to travel there wisely.

But during last season (2007-2008) and its near-record snowfall, we began to notice a disturbing new trend of skiers & boarders, alone and in large groups, traversing from that lower A-Basin gate around the entire basin, crossing about 25 commonly-observed avalanche paths mid-slope. In the world of Snow Science, that’s not considered wise. ('Cuz what’s it called again? Oh yeah, that’s right, AVALANCHE Basin! Sheesh!)

When we talked to some of these people, it was clear that many of them had no idea they were in harm’s way. So we felt obligated to change the way we managed this area by removing the gate. Now, after further consideration, we’ve decided we can re-establish the gate but change the way we manage its opening on certain avalanche-prone days.

But what about the trees?

For those who’ve written in about the trees below the gate: When the gate is closed the trees will be out-of-bounds because they’re just too close to the avalanche path. But the good news is that there IS a gate now, so the trees will usually be pretty easy to access.  Just check the sign at the saddle before you go!

 

Day in the life...

Since I wrote the first draft of this article, I had THIS experience. I was half-way through ski-cutting (with a guard) just below the ropeline along the top of Rick’s Face, that big rock just beyond (skier’s left of) the 1st switchback on Kelly’s Gap Road. It was right after opening on a deep powder morning when one should definitely keep a partner in sight. Someone who was obviously a great skier comes flying down Right Angle and sprays me with snow, just barely stopping before hitting the ropeline and knocking me over. I tell them to be careful because knocking over a ski patroller—who is ski cutting avalanches—in a closed area—well, there are just some problems with that.

The person then continues down and stops right BELOW Rick’s Face, never looking up at me or the avalanche hazard I had just said I was there to mitigate. They also didn’t seem to notice the big piles of snow I created, up against the trees below, definitely deep enough to bury someone. They skied off happily, as they should, but the moral of the story is this: Ya’ gotta keep those avalanche eyes ON when you’re in avalanche terrain. Keep a partner in sight. Travel one-at-a-time so you don’t load an avalanche-prone slope all at once. Travel with a transceiver you've practices using (perhaps over at the "Easy Searcher" next to the Cambell Basin Lodge) a shovel, and an avalanche probe. And the lesson of the A-Basin gate is: don’t cut into avalanche-prone terrain mid-slope until it’s first been released or compacted from the TOP. It’s better to be BEHIND large amounts of moving snow than right BELOW it!

Happy Skiing/Boarding

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Continuing on from a while back...The patrol has a name for most every one of the 300 or so avalanche paths at Crystal.  But more importantly, we have lots of names for landmarks and terrain features that help us find folks when rescue is necessary.  And we know that lot's of different groups of "regulars" have their favorite names too.  So let's share!

We'd like customers to know "our" names for times they need our help in odd places.  And we'd like to know "your" names so we can sort out confusion in emergencies.  For example, we know a lot of people use "Last Chance" as a name for an area we call "Last Scream" because our "Last Chance" is somewhere else. 

So what follows are names, followed by location descriptions, in the area we call Northway, the areas accessed primarily by the Northway Chairlift.  I'll soon be posting lists for Campbell Basin (Forest Queen, High Campbell, Quicksilver & Gold Hills chairlifts) and South Backcountry.

• The bold names refer to other definitions on the charts. 
• The non-bold names are shown on the current Trail Map. 
• Left and right refer to SKIER'S left and right.

SAFETY WARNING!

For safety, we recommend you stay on groomed trails.  If you make the choice to venture off the beaten path, please keep the following in mind (and spread the word)

• The places listed below are NOT designated Trails or Runs.  Unmarked hazards, including pockets of avalanche hazard, can exist at any time.  These areas may not be patrolled on a regular basis. 
• Some terrain features are deceptive and visibility can deteriorate within minutes.  Travel with someone familiar with the area until you know your way around.  Keep each other in sight and steer clear of  tree wells.  Make a plan about when/where to rendevous if you get separated, and stick to it.  Keep cell phones & radios with you, keep them turned on or make a plan to check-in with each other at pre-established times, and save each others' frequencies / phone numbers.   Keep the Ski Patrol Emergencies Only number, (360) 663-3064 with you.
• The snow surface may not be continuous and walking may be required.   
• In steep icy terrain, taking off metal edged skis & boards may increase your risk of long uncontrolled slides into places from which you cannot extricate yourself. 

Northway Infromal Place Names

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A while back, Kim K. invited comments about names given to un-designated terrain features at Crystal.  The patrol has a name for most every one of the 300 or so avalanche paths at Crystal.  But more importantly, we have lots of names for landmarks and terrain features that help us find folks when rescue is necessary.  And we know that lot's of different groups of "regulars" have their favorite names too.  So let's share!

We'd like customers to know "our" names for times they need our help in odd places.  And we'd like to know "your" names so we can sort out confusion in emergencies.  For example, we know a lot of people use "Last Chance" as a name for an area we call "Last Scream" because our "Last Chance" is somewhere else.  And don't even get me started on Ho Chi Minh Trail!  You wanna know where the Ho Chi Minh Trail is?  I'll tell you where it is.  It's in Southeast Asia, that's where!  Yeah, yeah, yeah, everybody knows it comes FROM the North.  And yeah, yeah, yeah, everybody knows it goes TO the South.  But those are the same thing!  Everybody's right...Let's move on! 

(Explanation:  For some reason, people get over-the-top passionate telling me about their-and-their-buddies' version of where Crystal's Ho Chi Minh Trail is located.  "Inaccurapedia" details about the Laotian original can be found here.)

Anyway, I invite anyone interested to share names and descriptions that you think are more popular than Patrol's!  All I ask is that 3 names remain sacrosanct:  Kemper's, Rockface, & Waterall refer to Permanently Closed Areas.  They are designated that way because they have been, or easily could be, deadly.  To reduce the chance of "crying wolf" or causing confusion, we don't use those terms lightly.  I hope you won't either!

So what follows are names, followed by descriptions of locations, for places we have names for, off of what we call "Mountain Top", the summit of Crystal Mountain itself, and areas accessed mainly by the Rainier Express and Green Valley Express chairlifts.  I'll soon be posting lists for the Northway area, and for Campbell Basin (Forest Queen, High Campbell, Quicksilver & Gold Hills chairlifts) and South Backcountry.

• The bold names refer to other definitions on the chart.  (A few may be on the forthcoming Northway or Campbell charts.) 
• The non-bold names are shown on the current Trail Map. 
• Left and right refer to SKIER'S left and right.

SAFETY WARNING!

For safety, we recommend you stay on groomed trails.  If you make the choice to venture off the beaten path, please keep the following in mind (and spread the word)

• The places listed below are NOT designated Trails or Runs.  Unmarked hazards, including pockets of avalanche hazard, can exist at any time.  These areas may not be patrolled on a regular basis. 
• Some terrain features are deceptive and visibility can deteriorate within minutes.  Travel with someone familiar with the area until you know your way around.  Keep each other in sight and steer clear of  tree wells.  Make a plan about when/where to rendevous if you get separated and stick to it.  Keep cell phones & radios with you, keep them turned on or make a plan to check-in with each other at pre-established times, and save each others' numbers.   Keep the Ski Patrol Emergencies Only number, (360) 663-3064 with you.
• The snow surface may not be continuous and walking may be required.   
• In steep icy terrain, taking off metal edged skis & boards may increase your risk of long uncontrolled slides into places from which you cannot extricate yourself. 

MOUNTAIN TOP INFORMAL PLACE NAMES

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I often get this question while riding the chairlift.  What do you guys call the "s-turn" or "rock face" or "berry patch".  I am often surprised by the disparity between the Patrol names versus long time Crystal skier's names for places.  So let's get the record straight.  I would like to collaborate with the skiing public so that we can all start to call our favorite places and landmarks by the same language.

The other day my friend, Mark, told me that he called the Scree Field below Niagras "Rock Face".  Well, there is only one Rock Face at Crystal and it is permanently closed.  It's definitely not kosher to say you skied Rock Face.  The area below Niagras is called the Scree Field.  The face to the left of that is called Mike's face.  Below the Scree Field is called Lower Spook and it is a good way for snowboarders to avoid the Buff Trail.  Many of you call the Buff Trail I-5.  That's okay, but really it's the Buff Trail.  Others, however, call it the Ho Chi Minh.  This is wrong.  The Ho Chi Minh is actually the traverse out to the Throne from the top of Chair 6. 

There are two Elbow Chutes at Crystal.  One is okay to ski and the other is on Rock Face.  The open one is the first gate into Bear Pits from the top of Chair 6 (which is also called High Campbell Chair).  The front side of C6 under the chair is called OO (double oughts).  There's OO Right on the skier's right of the chair and OO Left on the skier's left.  Within OO R the main chute next to the chair is called Screaming Babies, then T-Slot is to the right of that.  To the skier's left of the chair is Rabbit Ears, then Faith's slide is to the left of that.  Further left we don't really have a name for the nice glade skiing towards the Bear Pits line.  Any ideas?  Below the Throne is called Hamburger.  Further to the right is the A Basin line.  Above the A Basin line is Alex's funnel and The Bowl.  These are chutes off the Throne that funnel into Hamburger and are only accessible when the southback is open. 

The Southback has a few place names.  There's the SE sides of the Throne and the King and the N side of the King.  In the saddle between the Throne and the King is a ribbed area called Little Alaska, closer to the Throne a nice open chute there is called Jersey Curve.  The start of the hike of the King is called Kirner's Corner aka Kirner's Cornice.  The traverse around the back of the King brings you first to the Beach and then to Boxcar (the big cornice that always builds there).  Past that are the Three Way Chutes that end with the Exit Chute.  To the left of that is Billy Chute and otherwise they are just named 1,2,3 and 4.  The SE Left side of the King has some nice place names, including my favorite, Sparkle Trees.  There's also the Sharkfin, Leaning Tree chute, the Divider Chute and Boneyard. 

The North side of the King starts with Sasquatch (the first easy entrance on the hike up the King).  Almost to the top is Toaster Chute.  At the top you can look straight down Pinball to the left and Brain Damage to the right.  Beyond Brain Damage is Hourglass, then Appliances and so on.  Most of these names are indisputable. 

I would like to hear some of the obscure place names out there.  What do you guys call some of the stuff out North?  How about the new Left Angle tree areas?  We like to divide that area into three parts -- Right Angle, Left Angle and Employee Housing. 

Finally, I keep hearing about a place called "S-Turn".  I can think of some good places for this name, but have no idea where it really is.

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