Snows are coming... time to pause, and read this...

If you haven't thought much about avalanches lately, then now's a good time to start.

Here's a quite personal account of an avalanche on Outside Online; perfectly illustrating how good judgement can sometimes get crowded out... and the consequences.

What started as a glorious powder day ended in a desperate fight for survival after three skiers were buried by a killer avalanche in the backcountry of Stevens Pass, in Washington's Cascades. Megan Michelson lived to tell about it, but she can't shake off a haunting question: How did a group of expert skiers make such a deadly mistake?

It's well worth reading the full account :- Tunnel Vision

I think about Laurie bravely stepping into their RV to tell her daughters that their dad was gone, and Josie, looking up at her, saying, "Am I not going powder skiing with Dad?"

:(

p.s. thanks to fatbob on snowheads for pointing that up.

Nice reminder. Skiing directly after snow storm (nobody likes to wait the recommended minimum of 2 days), 42 degrees slope (perfect for avalanche, terrain trap, broke off at rollover.

Sad story but all the ingredients were there for the tragic event to happen. Expert skiers or not they were definitely beyond what people would consider safe.

Sport Conrad are now offering a choice of Avvy Backpacks for 499 Euros including an ABS pack.

bandit wrote:Sport Conrad are now offering a choice of Avvy Backpacks for 499 Euros including an ABS pack.

I checked. Unfortunately they don't have Vario with carbon cartridges, and only sell them already with a steel cartridge. The one for 499 euros is too small.