Mummified Bodies found on Orizaba.

[Furthermore]

http://news.yahoo.com/effort-set-recove ... 25527.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

http://news.yahoo.com/two-mummified-bod ... 05320.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

It should be an interesting story on what happened.

[susanjoypaul]

Pretty crazy, with all the traffic that peak gets, that they just *now* found those bodies! When I was researching Orizaba years back (for a climb), I remember reading stories about deaths on the peak, but it's gotten so popular lately that you tend to forget about the dangers. Thanks for posting this.

-Susan

[Scott P]

Pretty crazy, with all the traffic that peak gets, that they just *now* found those bodies!

I assume that they were buried under snow and ice until now.

[TaylorHolt]

It sounds like they were found not far from the standard Jamapa Glacier route on the north side of the mountain. The glacier has been receding and must have just now exposed these bodies that are believed to have been buried in an avalanche.

[Steve Climber]

I'm still curious as to how someone falls 100' down the Jamapa

[susanjoypaul]

I'm still curious as to how someone falls 100' down the Jamapa

According to the second article, they believe it was an avalanche that occurred 55 years ago.

[Steve Climber]

Susan, Sorry I was referring to an article yesterday on it that said the first body was discovered by a climber who fell and slid down the glacier and self-arrested...he stopped near it and that is how it was first spotted.

On a related note, I also read something about 1-2 bodies being found in the Mt. Cook area of NZ. Same story; receding glacier coughed them up. Reports of 60+ missing in that area over the years. I'm guessing we're just getting started with the bodies popping up around the world as the ice/snow shrinks.

Macabre reminder of global warming.

[SnowAlien]

I'm still curious as to how someone falls 100' down the Jamapa

I am curious under what conditions Orizaba does avalanche? The angle of the upper glacier gets in the 40ties, but I wonder when they get enough snow for it to slide. From our experience (and seems like everyone else's around here) it was pretty icy. I wish the snow there was soft enough to ski...

[susanjoypaul]

Susan, Sorry I was referring to an article yesterday on it that said the first body was discovered by a climber who fell and slid down the glacier and self-arrested...he stopped near it and that is how it was first spotted.

On a related note, I also read something about 1-2 bodies being found in the Mt. Cook area of NZ. Same story; receding glacier coughed them up. Reports of 60+ missing in that area over the years. I'm guessing we're just getting started with the bodies popping up around the world as the ice/snow shrinks.

Macabre reminder of global warming.

Got it... ...I hadn't read that. Well, I guess that's the (one) upside to global warming: Some people will finally get some closure as their missing friends / family members are discovered.

I am curious under what conditions Orizaba does avalanche? The angle of the upper glacier gets in the 40ties, but I wonder when they get enough snow for it to slide. From our experience (and seems like everyone else's around here) it was pretty icy. I wish the snow there was soft enough to ski...

I believe it's been skied by a few folks on here. One young lady in particular.

-Susan

[SurfNTurf]

My understanding is that conditions were very different back when that accident would have taken place. It wasn't that long ago that teams roped up due to real crevasse danger and the Jamapa covered the Labyrinth, a section of the route that didn't even exist until recently. Avalanches were probably a bit more conceivable in the 60s, especially if the team was mounting its attempt outside of the standard climbing season.

[Steve Climber]

My understanding is that conditions were very different back when that accident would have taken place. It wasn't that long ago that teams roped up due to real crevasse danger and the Jamapa covered the Labyrinth, a section of the route that didn't even exist until recently. Avalanches were probably a bit more conceivable in the 60s, especially if the team was mounting their attempt outside of the standard climbing season.

Good point. When we were at the Canchola's place, I recall seeing a picture on the wall (circa 2006?) that clearly showed crevasse(s) running along the upper Jamapa, and snow/ice being continuous MUCH further down toward the Labyrinth. I also read somewhere that some are predicting the Jamapa to be all-but-gone by 2020. I'd believe it based on the difference between that picture and what we saw last Feb.

[Scott P]

My understanding is that conditions were very different back when that accident would have taken place. It wasn't that long ago that teams roped up due to real crevasse danger and the Jamapa covered the Labyrinth, a section of the route that didn't even exist until recently. Avalanches were probably a bit more conceivable in the 60s, especially if the team was mounting their attempt outside of the standard climbing season.

I climbed Popo in 1992 and even though it is lower, there were still big crevasses on the mountain (but not on the La Cruces route). The crevasses were big enough that they could be seen from the cities below. I didn't climb Orizaba, but even then it was said that there were some fair sized crevasses, though they were usually visible and avoidable in the dry season.

Here's a 1992 photo (sorry, I had a cheap camera) of Popo:



Although it's the eruptions that took most of the ice off Popo, it's still amazing how much has melted in Mexico.

This is a photo I took of Izta from the slopes of Popo:



This is the south facing side, where there were fewer glaciers. Now days, south side of the mountain is usually completely bare unless there is a fresh snowstorm.

An old guidebook I have, which was based on a 1972 climb says that the snow on Orizaba starts at Piedra Grande.