On Saturday, January 2, 2016 a snowmachine rider named Dashiell Erickson, 35, was caught and killed in an avalanche in Grubstake Gulch. This accident occurred on Alaska State land outside of the Hatcher Pass Management Area, and outside of the HPAC forecast area.
Dashiell Erickson, Joe Simpson and Todd Harris all had at least 20 years of experience traveling in the backcountry on snow machines. Simpson nor Harris had any formal avalanche education, however, Erickson had completed two avalanche classes in Alaska, one in 2000 and another in 2010. They carried all the appropriate safety equipment. They knew each other well and had many years of experience in the backcountry together as a team.