The 2009-10 season has been fairly safe from avalanche conditions up until now. This situation is changing as we move into the second half of the winter season. The month of January was not kind to the upper layers of the snowpack, and as new snow accumulates on top of the weak surfaces that were laid down during the last half of the month we are concerned that there will be more potential for avalanches and avalanche accidents through the end of the snow season.
The basic message we are trying to seed is that the snowpack has been forgiving up until now, but we are back to serious avalanche conditions that need to be respected.
Our advice to backcountry travellers is to be very aware of local avalanche conditions by consulting avalanche bulletins, talking to each other and keeping an eye out for signs of unstable snow. Talk with your group before you head out and discuss how you will match what you do with what the avalanche bulletin recommends on that day. You also need to practice good habits of backcountry travel, such as not stopping at the bottom of an avalanche slope, and riding one at a time in any avalanche terrain. Please also keep practicing with your rescue gear, just having a beacon, probe and shovel is not enough - you need a rescue practice.
I stress that the kind of snowpack and avalanches that we are experiencing are within the normal ups and downs that can be expected of winter in Western Canada. However, these normal ups and downs mean that avalanches cause more deaths than any other natural hazard in Canada. Please help us to reverse this deadly trend; most avalanche fatalities are preventable.
Here are some places where snowmobilers can get more information on avalanche safety:
www.avalanche.ca/bulletins
www.avalanche.ca/cac/training
www.avalanche.ca/sled
www.avalanche.ca/forums
www.snowandmud.com --- avalanche safety forum
www.snowestonline.com/forum/ --- avalanche safety forum
www.zacstracs.com
toll free bulletin 1 800 667 1105
Canadian Avalanche Centre 1 250 837 2141
Thanks for helping us get the message out!
Regards,
John Kelly,
Canadian Avalanche Centre
The basic message we are trying to seed is that the snowpack has been forgiving up until now, but we are back to serious avalanche conditions that need to be respected.
Our advice to backcountry travellers is to be very aware of local avalanche conditions by consulting avalanche bulletins, talking to each other and keeping an eye out for signs of unstable snow. Talk with your group before you head out and discuss how you will match what you do with what the avalanche bulletin recommends on that day. You also need to practice good habits of backcountry travel, such as not stopping at the bottom of an avalanche slope, and riding one at a time in any avalanche terrain. Please also keep practicing with your rescue gear, just having a beacon, probe and shovel is not enough - you need a rescue practice.
I stress that the kind of snowpack and avalanches that we are experiencing are within the normal ups and downs that can be expected of winter in Western Canada. However, these normal ups and downs mean that avalanches cause more deaths than any other natural hazard in Canada. Please help us to reverse this deadly trend; most avalanche fatalities are preventable.
Here are some places where snowmobilers can get more information on avalanche safety:
www.avalanche.ca/bulletins
www.avalanche.ca/cac/training
www.avalanche.ca/sled
www.avalanche.ca/forums
www.snowandmud.com --- avalanche safety forum
www.snowestonline.com/forum/ --- avalanche safety forum
www.zacstracs.com
toll free bulletin 1 800 667 1105
Canadian Avalanche Centre 1 250 837 2141
Thanks for helping us get the message out!
Regards,
John Kelly,
Canadian Avalanche Centre
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