Post
by BurnsideBob » September 8th, 2019, 5:02 pm
The old Texas Chairlift ran from below and south west of the current ski patrol building at MHM, uphill of the Mazot restaurant facility, and north of "Marmot Ridge". The upper end of the lift was north of and slightly below the top of the current Cascade Express Lift. If you follow the cat track that accesses A Zone and the Outer Limits Ski Run from Cascade Express, you will see the footings below you, and on down the slope. The ones I've run across had the bolts cut with acetylene torch. There is/was a memorial plaque for a man killed during lift construction, although that may have been relocated to the top of "Memorial Bowl".
Runnning out the cat track to A-Zone, the Avalauncher was in a small shed to the NE right on the ridge crest. The Avalauncher was retired when MHM got their howitzer for avy control, but the abandoned shed remained for some time. While it has been a couple years since I was up there on foot, the shed was still there BUT IIRC appeared to be gone the last time I skiied MHM. I have not seen the footing in the photograph, but if its location overlooks A-Zone it may well be for the Avalauncher--this is just speculation on my part, tho.
By way of explanation, an Avalauncher was a cannon-like device that used compressed gas to lob explosive charges. While it could reach slopes far beyond what a human could, it was inadequate to trigger avalanches in the area A Zone up to Super Bowl, which is, in part, why Heather Canyon would not open to skiing for days after big storms. Historically there have been some massive avalanches that broke loose above A-Zone and carried all the way down Heather Canyon past the bottom of the Heather Canyon Lift. Ditto major avalanches in Newton and Clark canyons--that's why there are no trees of any size along the creeks in the upper reaches of these drainages.
Skier Burnside
I keep making protein shakes but they always turn out like margaritas.