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Difference between a chute and a couloir

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lechickenwing
Posts: 19 - Karma: 11
im friggin confused...
Jun 10 2012 10:40PM
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Dr.Gonzo
Posts: 2552 - Karma: 87
couloirs have rocks on the side, to my knowledge thats the difference, i could be completely wrong.
Jun 10 2012 10:48PM
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SuwakaFlocka
Posts: 445 - Karma: 1,469
black diamond vs double black diamond
Jun 10 2012 10:53PM
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chickenonabun
Posts: 461 - Karma: 285
I don't know of this has anything to do with it, but usually I see that chutes are shorter and couloirs are longer.
Jun 10 2012 11:02PM
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250r
Posts: 2274 - Karma: 1,020
yea couloir means hallway in french, so ive always thought of it as having to do with having rock walls on either side, and i would also typically think coulies being longer than chutes. If you want a solid definition of what a real couloir is look up some of the stuff in places like chamonix.
Jun 11 2012 12:43AM
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SteveStepp
Posts: 9529 - Karma: 20,646
a couloir is what you put your beverages in to keep them cold
Jun 11 2012 12:48AM
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Sklar
Posts: 8863 - Karma: 31,577
from wikipedia:


A couloir (from the French word meaning "passage" or "corridor,") is a narrow gully with a steep gradient in a mountainous terrain.[1] A couloir may be a seam, scar, or fissure, or vertical crevasse in an otherwise solid mountain mass. Though often hemmed-in by sheer cliff walls, couloirs may also be less well-defined, often simply being a line of broken talus or scree ascending the mountainside and bordered by trees or other natural features. Couloirs are especially significant in winter months when they may be filled in with snow or ice, becoming much more noticeable than in warmer months when the majority of the snow and ice may recede. These physical features make the use of couloirs popular for both skiing and mountaineering.
Jun 11 2012 12:49AM
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JWoods
Posts: 2369 - Karma: 2,635
This.
Jun 11 2012 12:49AM
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zbphoto
Posts: 7789 - Karma: 12,037
I always thought that couloir was just the european word for chute?
Jun 11 2012 1:00AM
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bighomieflock
Posts: 2040 - Karma: 2,445
This seems right. And chute is like to fire a weapon. As in: I chute people when I play call of duty.
Jun 11 2012 1:12AM
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eheath
Posts: 61097 - Karma: 118,214
chutes are shorter and usually you straight line or only take a couple turns in a chute. a couloir you actually completely ski through and is much longer and usually wider than a chutea
Jun 11 2012 1:23AM
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Literature
Posts: 13673 - Karma: 3,086
Same difference.
Jun 11 2012 2:30AM
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CassiusClay
Posts: 1757 - Karma: 2
This. Most 'couloirs' I've seen or skied have been pretty open. They're certainly bordered areas, but not to the extent of chutes. Chutes are generally very enclosed areas (typically for short distances) that you can either make jump turns or straight line. Couloirs can be very open... think of chutes as two close vertical lines you need to ski between and couloirs as something looking like \ /.
Jun 11 2012 2:50AM
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LivinOuttaBounZ
Posts: 949 - Karma: 382
Mmmm. Chutney.
Jun 11 2012 3:21AM
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Rosbif
Posts: 2543 - Karma: 930
I always figured they were synonyms.
Jun 11 2012 3:33AM
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Holte
Posts: 10730 - Karma: 7,744
basically, a coulior has a narrower choke than its entrance. Chutes can be narrow all the way through.
Jun 11 2012 5:12AM
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minihef
Posts: 811 - Karma: 763
Disagree strongly about the width aspect - many couloirs have very narrow cruxes or are consistently narrow, requiring jump turns and such. I would agree that with bigger vertical something is more likely to be described as a couloir rather than chute. Generally though there's a lot of overlap and chute is a more vague term IMO.
Jun 11 2012 9:20AM
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250r
Posts: 2274 - Karma: 1,020
yea i agree on the width part...the two lines in this are both couloirs, the one on the lookers left obviously is, but the one from the peak, although it has a 70cm crux, is still very much considered a couloir...granted it does have about 1300m of vertical drop
Jun 11 2012 1:35PM
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250r
Posts: 2274 - Karma: 1,020
/\oh whoops forgot to post the pic

Click for larger image
Jun 11 2012 1:39PM
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