Crested Butte resident Sarah Steinwand, 41, was caught in and killed in an avalanche west of Silverton on Feb. 20.
Her death is the third Colorado avalanche fatality of the winter season, and the second in less than a week. According to the Colorado Avalanche Information Center (CAIC), February is the deadliest month for avalanches in Colorado. Following a massive storm cycle that dumped nearly four feet of snow in the North Valley Presidents Day weekend, this February has been no different. Over the past week, two people have died in avalanches. Another 14 were caught, and eight partially buried. Another, a snowmobiler, remained fully buried for an hour and miraculously survived the avalanche.
According to the accident reports, in both of the fatalities, the avalanches broke several feet deep and spread across multiple terrain features. CAIC and the Crested Butte Avalanche Center (CBAC) have continued to warn backcountry skiers to use caution as the snowpack around the state remained unstable through the beginning of the week. A “recent string of close calls and accidents in the region validate the challenging conditions,” a recent CBAC forecast read.
“The size of these avalanches, and the severe consequences of getting caught in one, are what’s driving the heightened danger,” CAIC wrote in a social media post on Monday.
According to the preliminary accident report, Steinwand, a splitboarder, and another skier were caught in an avalanche on a terrain feature locally known as “The Nose,” west of Silverton near Ophir Pass. The skier escaped the avalanche, but the debris buried Steinwand.
Staff from a nearby backcountry hut alerted search and rescue of the accident and helped the skier locate her.
Members from the San Juan County Sheriff's Office, Silverton, San Juan County and La Plata search and rescue teams, Silverton Avalanche School and CAIC, along with a helicopter from the nearby Silverton Mountain, joined the rescue, but Steinwand did not survive. CAIC staff visited the site on Friday, but the avalanche center did not release the full report before press time.
The valley mourned the loss of Steinwand, who was known for spreading her love for the Gunnison Country’s wild places and her community. A Colorado native, Sarah started skiing at the age of 4, and learned to snowboard when she was 13. In Crested Butte, Sarah was the public relations director for Romp Skis, and founded her own company, Treeline PR, where she supported a number of other local outdoor industry businesses. When she wasn’t in the office, she spent her time snowboarding, mountain biking, fly fishing and backpacking.
The years that Eligh Purvis knew Steinwand taught him about the value of shared experiences, he said. Purvis first met Steinwand through his job at Romp.
“People like Sarah are what makes Crested Butte such an incredible and unique place,” Purvis said. “It will forever be a reminder to stay in the moment, look at the flowers, trees, birds, fish and snow and to love the people that are around me.”
On Feb. 24, a group of roughly 50 friends and family members gathered on Mt. Crested Butte for a sunset ride in honor of what would have been Sarah’s 42nd birthday.
“Sarah. A few days ago, you texted me the last thing you’d ever say to me: ‘It’s so good.’ You were talking about the new Caamp song that dropped that day (of course), but really, you somehow managed to gift me the exact words I need to describe what it felt like to be friends with you,” Lisa Slagle wrote in a social media post. “It’s. so. Good. Like you, that sentence is small but strong. Understated, yet full of meaning. Optimistic. You, Sarah, were SO good.”
Friends have started a meal train to help support Steinwand’s brother, Matt “Steiny.” So far, the page has raised $300.
(Bella Biondini can be contacted at 970.641.1414 or bella@gunnisontimes.com.)
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